


Run

by FaeQueenInu



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Adventure, Eventual Romance, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-02-28 07:36:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 22,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18751927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FaeQueenInu/pseuds/FaeQueenInu
Summary: She did not know where she was going or what she was searching for, but for once, she had swallowed her pride and done as he had demanded of her. He told her to take the Tesseract, to run as far and fast as she could, and to not for a second look back. And so, she did. (Darcy x Loki pairing, following an EndGame alt timeline)





	1. Chapter 1

_ Prologue _

* * *

 

_ Steady as a heartbeat, the sound of her feet hitting the ground seemed to echo through the forest. Her breathing heavy, labored, her lungs aching with each breath of icy cold air. Her hair whipped about behind her, and her palms were scratched and bleeding from all the times she had fallen to the ground.  _

_ Yet she continued forward. _

_ In the back of her mind, she silently cursed herself. How did she always manage to get herself in these messes? Her whole life seemed like some sick joke, some endless cycle of ‘It couldn’t get worse than this,’ all culminating to this point. From Jane to Thor to Tony to  _ him _ , her life was just an endless crescendo of one in a million happenstances that led to this particular situation. _

_ A Political Science major should never have met an astrophysicist. _

_ A human should never have befriended a God. _

_ A stupid girl should never have worked for the infamous and brilliant Tony Stark. _

_ And  he should never have even looked twice at her. _

_ But it happened. It all happened. And that god damned Tesseract… so much pain. So much suffering caused by it. Oh, how she hated the thing… yet here she was, running endlessly through the forest, feeling the dull warmth of it pulsing in her backpack. _

_ She did not know where she was going or what she was searching for, but for once, she had swallowed her pride and done as he had demanded of her. _

_ He told her to take the Tesseract, to run as far and fast as she could, and to not for a second look back. _

_ And so, she did. _


	2. Chapter 2

_ Chapter 2: _

* * *

 

_ Tap. Tap. Tap. _

_ Her finger continued to tap the absent minded rhythm upon the banister, her chin resting in her other hand as she stared with an apathetic gaze at the party-goers below. Usually, she would be ecstatic at the idea of a party, especially one with as expensive of booze as this one, but this party wasn’t exactly her scene. _

_ The rich elite milling about amongst themselves, trading trivial banter that both bored and insulted her. Were she not here for work, she would have left as soon as she arrived. This was not how she had planned to spend her first ever trip to Germany, but Tony needed someone to go represent Stark Industries, and she had stupidly volunteered. _

_ At least she got a gorgeous dress and accessories out of the favor. The ebony silk gown clung to her curves nicely, with both a deep cut V on her chest as well as a tall slit up her thigh. As for jewelry, she had a pair of thick gold bracelets adorned on each wrist, with matching strappy heels and small clutch. Faint gold shadow on her eyes, a pale nude lip color, her face framed by the curls of her long, dark-colored hair. Simple, but effective: she originally had every intention of finding a paramour at this event, but her plans were quickly dashed. _

_ The available men she encountered were mostly either old or chauvinistic, or even worse, a combination of both. Now, here she stood, hiding up on the balcony from being hit on by another pig until it was a respectable time to ditch the event. _

_ “So are you hiding or spying?” _

_ Jumping, her head whipped around to see a ridiculously handsome man smirking at her, a boyish glint of mischief in his eyes. “Wh..What?” Her heart hammered in her chest, and she silently cursed herself for her nerves. _

_ Chuckling to himself, he moved to lean against the banister next to her, resting his ornate walking stick, one with a large and brilliant blue stone, against the railing. “Well, I could only think of two reasons why such a beautiful woman would be all alone and avoiding this lavish party.” His voice rolled over her, deep and seductive. “Either she is hiding from the prying eyes of the men below, or she is a spy who doesn’t want to be caught.” His eyes seemed to glow, the flirtatious mischief practically rolling off of him with each word he spoke. _

_ Catching on, she gave him a sly grin. “Well, maybe it’s a little of both.” She gave him an obvious appraisal, her eyes slowly perusing his tall frame. Though not the body builder type, his body seemed to be a lean and muscular shape under his suit, his face sharp and angular with piercing green eyes, and long, slicked back raven hair. His hands drew her attention however: they seemed almost as if they had been sculpted from marble, smooth and lean muscle with long fingers that a pianist would envy. _

_ Approving of what she saw, she leaned into him, quirking a brow as she challenged him. “What are you going to do about that?” _

_ He laughed, low and sultry, in a way that sent shivers up her spine. “Well...perhaps I should keep an eye on you…” His hand went up, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. “For the safety reasons…” _

_ “Safety?” _

_ “To save you from the prying eyes,” he drawled, his accented voice sounding English, yet not at the same time. “And to ensure that you are not up to any undue mischief.” _

_ Oh, she had gotten lucky with this one… _

_ She was about to speak, but a familiar song filled the void. The ‘I am Iron Man’ guitar riff sounded off from her phone, and she audibly groaned. “Just a sec, its my boss.” He gestured to her bag, indicating that he did not mind, still leaning in towards her. _

_ Digging around for a minute, she made a sound of triumph as she dramatically pulled out her phone, eliciting another amused chuckle from her admirer. Answering, she snipped, “What is it, Stark? You are ruining my flirt vibes.” _

_ The man quirked a brow at her choice of words, but she gave him a coy smile as she listened to her boss.  _ “Look, I’m sorry to interrupt your fun, but you need to leave that party.  **Now** .”

_ Her brow scrunched in confusion, and she turned away from the man as she spoke to her boss. “Tony, what’s wrong-” _

“You remember that Thor guy you told me about?”

_ Her shoulders stiffened. “Yeah, of course. Did SHIELD find out that I told you? Can I plead Tequila induced insanity?” _

_ When Tony didn’t laugh, she knew it was bad…  _ “His brother, Loki, is on Earth and has been going on a murder spree. Darcy. Don’t panic. But they spotted him entering that party.”

_ Her blood went cold. “He’s here?!” _

“I said don’t panic, he might notice you. I’m on route, but some of SHIELD should be there soon. You just need to get the hell out of there.”

_ “What… What does he look like?” _

“Shaggy black hair, tall with sharp features, and based on pictures I’ve seen, he basically has a look that just seems to scream ‘God of Mischief’.”  _ Her shoulders stiffened, as cold dread washed over her. _ “He also has some alien weapon with him, what looks like-”

_ “A staff with a large blue stone?” _

“....Darcy, how did you know-”

_ She felt a presence at her back, felt as an arm wrapped around her waist and spoke into her ear. “Tell Mr. Stark goodbye, Miss Lewis.” _

_ Shaking like a leaf, she whispered into the phone. “Tony, I’m scared…” _

_ The phone was then plucked from her hand, Tony screaming curses and shouts on the other end. She heard the tell tale beep of a call being ended, followed by the loud crunch of metal and plastic which made her jump. _

_ Turning slowly to face him, she held his gaze, shaking, but refusing to back down. “What do you want from me?” _

_ His head tilted slightly, and the beautiful face suddenly seemed so much more dangerous than before. Yet his eyes held a sort of admiration, seeming pleased that even through fear, she did not back down. Holding out his hand, those perfect hands that she should have known were too good to be true, he asked, “Walk with me, Miss Lewis.” _

_ Swallowing a gasp of air, she hesitantly took his offered hand, and he linked her arm with his before leading her… somewhere. As he picked up the strange, glowing staff she vaguely wondered how he knew her name… _

* * *

 

She needed a shower. Badly.

Her hair was a knotted mess, and her clothes smelled like she had just ran a marathon mixed with a hint of smoke and gunpowder. Clad in Agent Romanov’s clothes, a dark colored SHIELD issue shirt and black jeans, she hoped Nat would not hold the state of the clothes against her. She uneasily shifted in in the ill fitting clothes, the pants being far too long on her legs and tight in the thighs, the boots being two sizes too big, and the shirt having seen better days.

Given the situation, she guessed it could have been much worse, what with the fact that they had just stopped an alien invasion, but you know, details.

Flopping back against the counter, she watched the Avengers as they detained the cause of all this trouble: Loki. Prince of Asgard. God of Mischief. Bringer of Chaos.

A royal pain in the ass.

“If it’s all the same to you,” he quipped, grunting in pain as he propped himself up out of his Hulk induced crater. “I’ll have that drink now.”

She let out an unladylike snort, causing all eyes to fall on her. “You’re not the one with a giant hole in your side.”

Pushing off the counter as he spoke, she tried to ignore him as she walked around the bar and poured herself a glass of Bourbon. A very,  _ very _ tall glass. “I believe I already apologized for that incident…”

Her eyes darted to the side as a familiar playboy walked up to the bar. He had his usual smirk on his face, but a quick look at his eyes showed the concern and disbelief that he felt. “Not that I’m not immensely happy that you’re alive, Darcy, but…” Gesturing to her stomach, he bluntly asked, “Just how  _ are _ you alive? We thought...” His voice sounded choked as the facade collapsed on his face.

Thor had moved to his brother, pulling out cuffs from somewhere and restraining him. She reached across the counter and grabbed Tony’s hand, giving it a squeeze of reassurance. “It’s going to take a lot more than a crazy alien in bondage to get rid of me.”

Several of the room’s occupants struggled to hold back their laughter, while the ‘crazy alien’ simply shot her a scowl. “As for how I’m not pushing up daisies,” she continued while giving a pointed look at Loki. “He did some Hoo-Doo Voo-Doo magic shit on me or something.” Grimacing, her hand fell to her side. “I’m not fully healed, but I’m stable enough to move around, apparently. My bets are on adrenaline induced, though.”

“Oh?” the archer chimed in. She thinks his name is Clint, but she’s not entirely sure. He was brainwashed for most of this. “And why is that?”

“Because the more the situation calms down, the more my side is beginning to hurt like a mofo.”

All eyes were on her again, and Tony quickly strode over. The two had worked closely over the past year, more like mentor/apprentice than boss/employee, so she did not really care how he lifted the side of her shirt, simply continuing to sip on her Bourbon.

“You honestly should not be moving,” Loki quietly commented, his face betraying no emotions, yet the words of concern were enough to garner a confused look from Thor.

“Shit.” Tony poked the mass of purplish blue bruising on her torso, small bits of blood still dried on her skin, and a greenish glow seemed to be emitting from the wound itself, holding it together and disallowing her to bleed out. She winced at the poke and slapped his hand away. “What the fuck is that?”

“A common healing spell back on Asgard,” came the booming voice of the resident God of Thunder, who hoisted Loki up from the ground as he spoke. “Loki is a skilled healer and has saved numerous allies in the past from fatal wounds.”

“Your ‘healer’ brother now has a pretty severe body count,” Natasha griped. “And skilled or not, that wound does not look too pleasant. We should get her to the hospital, ASAP.”

The elevator dinged, and Darcy began to tune them out as the SHIELD agents filed in, bringing in cases and what not to help with gathering up the mess. Part of her mind briefly bristled at the thought of SHIELD in the tower- both her and Tony had every intention of ensuring they were blocked from ever having access, with each just as wary of the shadowy organization- but the pain won out and she found herself not caring, just hoping for the Bourbon to kick in soon as she gripped the counter tighter.

Loki was making some kind of quip, shifting his form to the golden boy Steve for a minute, but she watched as Thor slapped some kind of muzzle on the Trickster’s mouth, clearly not in the mood to listen. The banter seemed to stay relatively light all things considered, and she soon found herself being led in a daze to the elevator by Tony, who carried the case with the Tesseract along with him. Thor and Loki followed as well, the team splitting up for the most part to help get things organized.

After a brief argument with the big green guy about how he should take the stairs, which she was shocked did not end more violently than just a dented elevator door, she found herself descending along with the rest to the lobby. Uncomfortable, she fidgeted in the packed elevator, shifting her weight to her other foot, and a sharp pain jolted her body. She felt light headed and nauseous suddenly, causing her to sway, and she felt a pair of hands grip her shoulder to steady her. The entire elevator stiffened, and a glance over her shoulder confirmed that it was none other than Loki who had come to her ‘rescue’.

The past few days had gone by in a blur, but the few rare moments she had with him had certainly been… interesting. Through the moments of madness, she had caught glimpses of what she could only describe as  _ humanity _ from the would be dictator. This moment in particular showed concern, a sort of worry he had held towards her since the moment she had been injured…

The moment he had sunk his scepter through her as if she were paper.

Noticing the tension from the other occupants, he let go and rolled his eyes, a snippy retort obviously on the tip of his tongue yet hindered by the muzzle on his face. The elevator relaxed slightly, but she could feel the eyes shift towards her, a mixture of confusion and wariness. Now she felt compelled to roll her eyes at the absurdity of it all. What in the hell had her life turned into.

Thankfully, she did not have to suffer the awkwardness of the elevator for long. Soon, they found themselves walking out into the hall, and she could see the medics waiting just outside the glass doors. Leaning heavily on Tony, she sighed in relief. “Oh thank god, I hope they have strong drugs.”

Tony quirked a brow, glancing down at the girl clinging to his arm. “Yep, lots of happy drugs for our human shish kabob.” 

“Why would you need drugs to make you happy?” Thor questioned, and Loki had a look cross over his face that screamed that Thor was a complete idiot. “We all fought valiantly and are victorious! Now is the time for rejoicing and celebration!” Darcy managed a smirk at the jovial man. Leave it to Thor to find the best in the worst situation. He gave her a boyish grin, his voice beaming with pride. “You should be proud for your bravery.” And with that, he heavily patted her back in admiration.

Unfortunately for her, the motion jarred her torso, causing her to make a pained gasp and nearly collapse to the floor. “Oh god, I  _ really _ need those drugs.”

While she clutched her stomach and vaguely wondered if she was supposed to be seeing spots across her vision, Tony struggled to prop her up. “The ‘happy’ drugs we are talking about is pain medication, Thor. Mortals need those sometimes when injured,  _ such as being stabbed by a giant mystical spear _ .” Thor threw his arms in the air and backed away when he realized his mistake.

Laughing morbidly, she quipped, “Especially ones who don’t regularly suffer from life threatening injuries. Oh boy, does this make skinned knees feel like a massage.” Briefly, she let her eyes dart to Loki, who startled her with how close he was hovering. His eyes were narrowed in concern, occasionally shooting glares towards his ‘brother-not-brother.’ 

The logical part of her brain wondered why he would be so concerned about her well being now: he lost, and she was useless as a pawn at this point. The more sporadic part of her brain pointed out, much to her chagrin, why would he go to such lengths to save her in the first place? She was fully aware that the spear should have killed her. It was just the bit of hocus pocus magic that kept her alive.

She suddenly paled, wondering exactly  _ how _ the doctors were supposed to treat her wound if it was enchanted. Would she die if they touched it? Maybe it would explode? Hell, would alien magic mutate her or something?

Her mind was racing, and the logical half tried to tell her that she was likely having a panic attack, one induced by all the stress as of late. But a panic attack tends to trump logic, and her breathing quickened as all the events of the past week suddenly collapsed around her. 

She barely noticed the SHIELD agents intercepting them at the door, and paid even less attention to the argument they were trying to have over jurisdiction. Which honestly, what idiot was going to try and argue with  _ Thor _ , the literal  _ god _ of thunder, and Tony Stark, who is… Tony. 

The panic made her begin to shake, and she reached out to grab Loki’s arm. She vaguely noticed his worry and concern at her actions, clearly caught off guard, but before either he or she could think about her actions, she shouted, “Am I going to grow a tail?!”

Silence fell over the group, with everyone, even the SHIELD agents, staring at her as if she had finally lost whatever shred of sanity she might of possessed. Tony sat a hand on her shoulder. “Darcy, what the f-”

And his words were cut off, his body beginning to spasm as he seemed to choke on air. Everyone huddled around, all shouting at him in concern, and she found herself dropping to his side despite the scream of protest from her stomach.

“Give him some space!” She shouted. “He’s having a seizure.”

Everyone continued to fuss, and Darcy, still shaking from panic, looked around wildly. That’s when she noticed Loki, looking off behind him with a curious expression. She followed his eyes towards a some soldier walking briskly away with a case.

_ The  _ case.

Before she could shout at him, a roar sounded in the hall and the stairwell door was slammed open by none other than the Hulk, smacking the soldier square in the face. The case flew across the floor and snapped open, sending the contents skidding towards them. Briefly, she wondered who in the hell picked a case with such flimsy latches for such an important and powerful item.

But all coherent thought ended when the item in question skidded to a halt at Loki’s feet.

Time seemed to freeze for second, and she could not hear any of the commotion around her. Darcy’s eyes locked with the Trickster God’s, and her body tensed as his intentions became clear. With no time to think, she lunged forward as he quickly scooped up the Tesseract, and she felt her arms wrap around his leg just as the pressure in the room seemed to drop. 

And the last thought she had before being teleported away was that the last image anyone would likely have of her alive was security footage of her clinging to a God’s leg like a damn koala bear.

  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as a heads up, this IS going to be a longer fic. I'm still really new to this site, so I marked it wrong orignally. Thank you to the people in the comments letting me know how to fix that!!!  
> Also side note, I'm so incredibly happy with the response already. Y'all are all so nice!

_ “What in the hell am I doing here?” _

_ She spoke quietly to herself, fidgeting in her seat as her fingers tapped against her leg. Never one to sit still well, her ability to lounge about diminished greatly depending on how nervous she was. And right now was a solid fifty out of ten on the ‘Darcy’s panic level’ scale. _

_ She had no idea how she had let Jane talk her into this. Yeah, she was good at tinkering with things: she helped Jane numerous times with fixing their equipment, and yeah, maybe she was good at programming… but it was mostly just luck in her opinion.  She had no formal training at the time, and the closest thing she had to a proper education was her two semesters as a Political Science major and her internship as Jane’s assistant. _

_ Yet somehow, Jane had decided that a Poli Sci major was a ‘waste of potential’ and went into full on mom mode with the ‘my child is a prodigy’ type demeanor. She made detailed documentation all of the devices Darcy worked on as well as copying any strings of programming she had written before sending it all off to Agent What-his-face, the stealer of iPods. Darcy told her it was a waste of time, as if SHIELD, a top secret government agency, would hire a motor mouth like her. _

_ And for once, Darcy was right. _

_ However, Agent Think-his-name-starts-with-a-C apparently forwarded her skills to a contact he knew that would possibly ‘see potential’ in her. He neglected to inform them that his ‘contact’ was freaking  _ Tony. Stark.

_ She thought it was a joke. Part of her still thought this was a joke. Yet here she sat, in her best interview clothes, which honestly wasn’t much, waiting for her turn to be interviewed by the man himself. Several other applicants milled around her, all talking amongst themselves. They all had on better clothes than her, expensive looking suits and dresses compared to her plain black slacks and white button up shirt, sending glances that were  _ clearly _ snooty glares. The moment they found out that she did not have some impressive resume and degree, they all turned their noses up at her. _

_ One at a time, each of the other applicants was called upon by some voice on a loudspeaker, some British dude named Jarvis. They would head down the brightly lit hall and into the office, disappearing for upwards of an hour only to return to the little group and sit in a chair with an uncertain look on their faces. With each applicant’s name called, her nerves seemed to renew with a vengeance, and for the first time in a long while, she actually found herself at a loss for words. _

_ “Miss Lewis, Mr. Stark will see you now.” _

_ She was the last to be called. Her fingers rapidly tapped on her leg as she stood outside of the office door, stealing her nerves as she took a deep breath. This was  _ actually _ happening. _

_ Now or never. _

_ Walking through the door, she realized that the ‘office’ was actually a lab. The tension in her shoulders melted slightly, looking around in blatant amazement at the equipment lining the walls of the large, spacious lab. From tools for soldering and welding to high tech and sleek computers, it all made her mind race with possibilities. _

_ “So, you are Miss Darcy Lewis.” _

_ Spinning around, her eyes nearly bugged out of her skull. Tony Stark stood just a few feet away, swiping through pages with his hand on a glass monitor. “Uh, yeah, that’s me!” she replied, mentally scolding herself for how pathetic she sounded. _

_ Not looking up from the screen, he quipped, “Did you know that you are technically the least qualified person to interview here today?” Her heart sank. “The only one without a degree or any form of certification.” Glancing up at her, he mused, “Are you even certified to hold a welder?” _

_ “You need to be certified?” _

_ “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.” He zoomed in on one particular page. “This resume is quite interesting, despite the lack of qualifications.” _

_ “What resume?” _

_ He finally looked up to meet her eyes. “You really need a crash course in how to ‘fake it till you make it,’ a.k.a.- bullshitting a situation to your favor.” _

_ Submitting herself to defeat, she merely shrugged. “It’s been an off day for me: usually I’m much better at laying on the bullshit.” Moving to lean against a counter, she muttered, “God damn nerves got the best of me.” _

_ He seemed to appraise her for a minute before commenting, “Was it this Dr. Foster or Coulson who put you up to this?” _

_ Her brows scrunched. “Coulson?” _

_ “...the SHIELD agent?” _

_ “Oh! Him!” She scowled. “He stole my iPod.” Stark burst out laughing, seeming to not know how to react in this train wreck of a situation. Sighing, she elaborated. “Jane- Dr. Foster- saw ‘potential’ in me when I was her assistant and tried getting SHIELD to hire me. According to Agent Steals-my-shit, however, I’m a-” she held up her fingers to do mock air quotes, “-’security risk.’” At Stark’s furrowed brow, she elaborated. “In case you haven’t noticed, I have no filter.” _

_ He smirked. “Well, you may have no filter, but you certainly have talent.” _

_ “...what.” _

_ “If you actually worked on all these devices  _ and _ wrote this code that Coulson sent me, you are  _ way _ ahead of what someone your age should know, especially from a self taught background.” Before she could comment, he continued. “Let’s run a scenario.” _

_ Walking purposely across the lab, she hurried to follow, and they both stopped on the edge of a large, taped circle on the floor. Various piles of scrap lay scattered about, surrounding a large machine in the center. _

_ Stepping into the circle, Stark remarked, “Okay, so the scenario: we are trapped, I’m injured and or dying, so I’m utterly useless for help.” He sat down on the floor before gesturing to the machine. “ _ That _ is our ticket out of here.” _

_ “...it looks like junk.” _

_ “Well, yes, it technically is.” He huffed in annoyance. “However, it does turn on with power. Your job? Power it up with only items in the circle.” _

_ She frowned. “Well, so much for a plug outlet.” _

_ “Did I mention that time started the moment I sat down?” _

_ She jumped, scurrying into the circle and digging through the piles of scraps. Her heart hammered in her chest, panic gripping her throat, but she forced it to the back of her mind. Tony had said he was possibly dying in this scenario, so scenario Tony needed her to work quickly. _

_ Various cables and electrical boards were scattered about, all wonderful parts on their own, but useless to her in this situation. But then something caught her attention. Yanking out a set of jumper cables, she cringed as the pile came crashing down. _

_ “Hey! Destroying my stuff costs you points!” _

_ “Aren’t you dead yet?” _

_ “So does the sass!” _

_ Dragging the heavy cables to the machine, She attached them before darting back over to Stark. “That glowy thing in your chest powers your Tin Man Suit, right?” _

_ “....seriously?” _

_ She rolled her eyes before dropping next to him. “Sorry, I snark when stressed, but is it a yes or no?” _

_ He looked at her suspiciously and slowly replied, “...yes?...” Nodding sharply, she reached forward and ripped open his button up shirt. “WOAH NOW. I’m flattered but I’m taken-” _

_ “You said this was life or death,” she quipped, yanking up his undershirt to reveal the arc reactor in his chest before snatching up the cables. “And sorry, sir, but you…” She snapped the cables on the attachment nodes on either side of the arc reactor. “...are a walking battery.” _

_ With that, the machine roared to life, little lights flashing as it hummed quietly. Stark quirked a brow at her, a small smirk on his face. “You know, this was supposed to be an objectivity test. You know, one of those ‘how do you cope with failure’ type situations.” _

_ With a scoff, she remarked, “Okay, duly noted: next time your butt is on the line, I’ll just fail.” _

_ “And what makes you think there is going to be a next time?” _

_ Sighing, she muttered, “Yeah, yeah, I know.” Standing up, she brushed off her knees. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Stark.” Giving a mock salute, she turned to head to the door, shoulders slumped. _

_ “Hey, Lewis.” Her brows furrowed in confusion, and she glanced back over her shoulder at him. “Can you start your trial period on Monday?” _

_ “...I’m sorry,  _ what _?” _

* * *

Tony’s nerves were absolutely  _ wrecked. _

The past week had been a nightmare: Gods and war and all this craziness had completely drained him. Add in the nuke that he had to fly into an alien space portal, and Tony felt like the universe owed him some down time. Like,  _ years _ worth of downtime.

Of course, things couldn’t possibly work out for him. Hence him arguing with custody over Reindeer Games- honestly, SHIELD should know better than to argue with him and a  _ literal god _ about possession of said god’s little bro. But it didn’t surprise him that they were that dense. They  _ did _ try to nuke New York.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, Darcy was dragged into the mess too. He managed to refrain from mentioning to the girl how absolutely awful she looked: the pale color of her face paired with all the soot and grime, not to mention how horrific that wound looked... Guilt settled into the pit of his stomach. This mess was not what he had signed her on for. Yes, she manages to handle herself well in stressful situations, but that did not mean that he wanted to lead her headfirst into a war and nearly get her  _ killed _ .

He shuddered, remembering back to when they watched the footage of Loki carrying off what they had presumed to be her corpse. The numbness settled over him, and nothing but a blind determination and a need to Avenge her moved him forward. So seeing her alive at the Tower when he arrived to taunt Loki had been a relief that nearly broke him.

Now, all he wanted to do was get her to a medic, get some Shawarma, and then kick Loki through a portal to Asgard so that he would never have to look at his face again.

Unfortunately, that did not seem to be in the cards for him. And as he argued with the stubborn agents, he began to wonder how things could  _ possibly _ get worse.

That’s the moment when the pain shot through his chest.

He could hear them shouting at him, all panicked and worried, and had it not been for the agonizing pain in his chest, he might have been touched. He watched as Thor said something, holding that hammer thing over his reactor. His eyes bulged as he tried to warn that this might be a bad idea, but he couldn’t manage the words.

And suddenly, a jolt of lightning shot out of the hammer, and for a moment, Tony assumed he was dead. But the pain in his chest ebbed away, and he looked up to the boyish grin of the god of thunder.

“I thought that might work!” Thor said pridefully.

Staring incredulously at him, Stark asked, “You  _ thought _ ?”

Before they could continue this conversation, Thor glanced over his shoulder, his eyes scanning the area with a worried expression. “Where is Loki?”

Tony paled. “Where is the  _ Tesseract _ ?”

Thor’s mouth settled in a grim line. “He must have escaped with it. We must find it before he can cause more chaos.”

Tony wanted to scream in frustration: just his luck. Then, scrambling to his feet, his heart sped up as something else became apparent. “Thor,  _ where is Darcy _ ?”

* * *

 

This was a mistake.

A huge,  _ terrible _ mistake.

The biggest mistake in history, just next to wearing socks with sandals.

Her stomach screamed in protest, and the pain made it hard to breath. Her koala grip on Loki dropped the moment he finished teleporting them. Falling onto her side, she whimpered in pain while clutching her wound, black spots flooding her eyes. “I’m such an idiot…”

The sound of metal clanking together caught her attention, and she tilted her head up just in time to see the metal cuffs fall away from the Trickster’s wrists. Her eyes widened in shock and her jaw dropped.

He tucked the Tesseract casually under his arm and used his free hand to unlatch the muzzle from his mouth, dropping it to the stone floor. She remained rooted to her spot, frozen in pain and fear as he knelt beside her.

“Oh Miss Lewis,” he said with a dramatic sigh. His hand reached forward to tuck her hair behind her ear. “What  _ am _ I going to do with you?”

She wanted to reply, to give some witty response, but the spots on her vision won out, and she found herself slowly losing to unconsciousness. 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a quick little note: I'm aiming to post twice a week at least. Maybe an extra if I get the time. And thank you all so much for the support, it means a lot!!

_She wanted to puke._

_Staring in shock and horror at the scene in front of her, she held back a sob as she remained rooted to her spot, watching all the people run screaming from the building. He told her not to move, or he would kill her._

_She told him to fuck himself._

_He merely grinned in amusement, and upped the ante: if she ran, he would kill civilians._

_She shut up at that._

_The man on the sacrificial altar twitched, blood running down the side of his face onto the gold plated stone. Loki stood tall, looking pleased at his work, before turning to stride back to where she stood. "You take direction well."_

_Her eyes hardened, and she leveled her fiercest glare that she could at him. Despite the drastic height difference, she did not back down. "It's not like I had much of a choice."_

_He moved the tip of his staff under her chin, and she stifled a gasp, her knees trembling. "It was the_ only _choice, my dear. You will soon learn…" The staff dropped from her chin, and he reached forward to grab her arm, leading her out after the screaming crowd. "Freedom is life's greatest lie."_

_Stumbling after him, she tried to hang back, hoping to slip from his grasp, but he kept a firm grip on her wrist. As they walked out the door, a shimmering light spread over Loki, spreading even over to her. She watched in amazement as his suit shifted with the glowing light, revealing a leather armor with gold and emerald trim, and a horned helmet which sat atop his head. Even his staff changed, growing a long, wickedly sharp blade around the pulsing blue gem._

" _Someone has a flair for the dramatics…"_

_He spared her a sly smirk, his eyes perusing her form. "Well, at least I have good tastes…"_

" _What are you-" Her eyes turned down to her dress, and she yelped. Gone was the black silk dress, an in its place was an ornate Grecian-esque gown, one a deep shade of emerald green that matched his armor. "Holy shit!" Thankfully, the dress was the only thing changed, with her clunky gold bracelets still on her wrists._

_She wanted to yell at him, but her words died on her lips as they crossed the street and he casually shot a powerful blast from his scepter, hitting an approaching police car and causing it to flip. Everything was happening so fast, and she had no idea what to do or how to react. She needed to do_ something _, she was freaking Tony Stark's apprentice. She built his new suit's left leg all by herself for crying out loud!_

_Tony may have helped some, but she did_ most _of the work._

_But she did not have time to plan as he yanked her in front of him, into the crowd of people that he approached. Spinning around, she watched as more versions of him appeared, encircling the crowd._

" _Kneel before me!"_

_No one listened, all still panicking. All the copies of Loki scanned the crowd, but the original stared straight at her. "I said... " His staff slammed against the ground simultaneously with all the copies, causing a bright blue glow to surround them. "KNEEL."_

_And slowly, quietly, the crowd complied. And despite every rebellious bone in her body wanting not to, she obeyed as well. Though seeing the pleased glint in his eyes as he watched her kneel made her want desperately to smack him across the face._

" _I_ _s not this..._ simpler _?" He began to stroll forward, seeming to marvel at them all. "Is this not your natural state? It's the unspoken truth of humanity…" Stopping in front of her, he used the tip of the spear to tip her head back and look him in the eyes. She saw a manic look, and a brilliant blue color shone on once green irises. "That you_ crave _subjugation."_

" _Clearly you haven't spent much time among humans," she snipped, immediately regretting the words, but being unable to stop herself. "We don't really like being given orders."_

_He seemed to appreciate her attempt at rebellion. "Yet, here you are…" His fingers trailed along her cheek as he practically purred, "Kneeling for me."_

" _There is a_ huge _difference between willing subjugation and survival."_

_He laughed. "You have a fire in you!" The staff moved from her chin, yet she continued to glare at him. "I can appreciate that." Moving to circle her, he continued his monologue. "The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life's joy in a mad scramble for power, for identity..." He stopped behind her, and leaned forward, speaking directly into her ear in a way that sent shivers down her spine. "You were_ made _to be ruled." Standing straight back up, he added, "In the end, you will_ always _kneel…"_

_Movement in the corner of her eyes caught her attention, and she watched the entire crowd turn to stare at an older man who slowly rose from the ground. "Not to men like you."_

_Loki's attention turned away from her, focusing on the man. Darcy took that moment to turn to her bracelets, pressing on specific panels, hoping that he wouldn't notice. Thankfully, he did not, eyes completely focused on the old man. Cockily, he announced, "There are no men like me."_

_The old man's gaze did not waver, staring the God down, and Darcy began to rush, turning on the bracelets and letting them start shifting as metal plates traveled up her hands and arms. "There will_ always _be men like you."_

_Loki laughed. "Look to your elder, people." The bracelets finished shifting, locking into place as she carefully rose from the ground. The Trickster let his staff begin to glow setting to aim it at the old man. "Let him be an example…"_

_She lunged forward and stepped in front of him, grabbing the staff near his hand, her hand encased in a prototype from the Iron Man suit. He stared at her in surprise as she yelled, "I told you." She aimed her other armored hand directly at his chest, a bright white light glowing from her palm. "We don't like being given orders!"_

_And the blast went off, shooting him through the air while she tumbled backwards from the blowback, barely holding onto the spear. The rest of the crowd screamed and scattered as the Loki clones faded from existence._

_Sitting on her butt on the stone ground, she struggled to breathe properly, trying to regain her composure. She watched as a jet lowered in the plaza, and she scrambled up, bracing herself in case of another fight. As the jet opened up, she saw Loki begin to rise off of the stairs he had landed on. Out of panic, she lifted an armored hand at the villain again and shot him, practically burying the God into the concrete steps. He groaned in pain but made no move to get up again._

_Looking back to the jet, she saw a very concerned looking Captain America staring at her as if she had two heads. Clutching the scepter tightly, she managed to ask, "Uh… is there something on my face?..."_

* * *

Her head felt fuzzy, her limbs heavy as she struggled to drag her mind into wakefulness. She didn't want to wake up, however: The bed was _so_ comfy, swallowing her as if she were sleeping on a marshmallow with thick, soft blankets burrowed around her. But she had some nagging feeling in the back of her head, as if she were forgetting something…

Shooting up in bed, she shouted, "Loki!" But the sound was cut off by her cry of pain, hands dropping to the hole in her side. It throbbed at the sudden movement, and she could feel the tears welling up in her eyes at the pain.

A shimmer of green light appeared in front of her, and even without her glasses, she could tell who it was. He was immediately at her side, lifting the edge of her shirt- a tunic like shirt that she had certainly _not_ been wearing earlier. "Easy, my dear. Try not to aggravate your wound."

Huffing, she quickly rubbed her eyes in an attempt to hide the tears. "Then how about you not stab me next time."

He smirked, a hand gently pushing her shoulder to make her lay back down while he continued to inspect the wound. "I will keep that in mind…"

She stared at him, confused at the gentle manner in which he prodded at her wound, testing the green light that seemed to emanate from it. "Why are you helping me?"

"Why not?"

She shrugged. "I'm not really useful as a pawn, and even if it was some sudden care about my well being, you could have easily ditched me at some hospital."

He scoffed, finally looking up to meet her eyes. "As if I would trust some mortal doctor to heal you."

"Awww!" she cooed, grinning impishly. "You do like me!"

His eyes rolled as he shook his head. "You are... _intriguing_." Carefully, he pulled the tunic shirt back into place. "Nothing more." She gave him a look that she did not believe him, and he sighed. "Would you believe me if I said I would miss your company?"

Her brows shot up. "Uh, not really. I _did_ kind of shoot you when we first met. Twice."

As he smirked at her, she knew that look would be the death of her. "Well, considering that was not a deadly wound and was in defense of your people, you are still the one one on higher moral ground." He waved his hand, and suddenly a tray of fruits appeared on the nightstand. "Now, you need to eat. You haven't had anything since before the helicarrier attack."

"I had some Bourbon back at the Tower," she quipped, only to receive a displeased scowl. Not wanting to upset him, she snatched an apple off the tray and began to quietly munch on it. That seemed to make him happier, so she ventured to ask another question. "So...where are we?"

He shrugged. "Just one of my spare properties."

"One of…?" Her eyes bulged, glancing around the fancy looking room, finally noticing how decadent it appeared. It was still woodsy, with darker woods and shades of green, but the intricate carvings of all the furniture and sheer size was enough to let her know that this place was _not_ cheap. "You actually _own_ property?"

"Under various aliases, yes." He plucked a mango off the tray, taking a large bite, chewing slowly as he stared off at the wall, considering his words. "I am... _was_ a prince, and I have more forthought than my brother: I've had stores of money here for centuries, and I made the right investments over the years." With a shit eating grin, he added, "I likely rival your _boss_ across all my accounts."

"Woah…" But the mention of Tony seemed to bring the whole situation collapsing in, reminding her of everything that had happened over the past few days. Her eyes dropped and she nibbled on the fruit, not sure what to say. This whole conversation had been entirely too casual, and with the reality setting in, she felt herself fidget.

She could feel his eyes on her, waiting calmly, patiently, almost seeming to expect the questions that were burning in her brain. As if reading her thoughts, he announced, "Ask whatever you want Darcy: no harm will come to you, and I will answer as well as I can."

Staring at the apple in her hands, she bit her bottom lip, considering her questions. Then, in a soft voice, she quietly asked, "Who was controlling you during the battle?"

He started, obviously caught off guard. "What makes you think I was under someone's control?" His back straightened, and he forced too much casualness into his tone. "I was the one who held the staff-"

"You're eyes are green." She finally looked up to meet his gaze. His posture betrayed nothing, but his eyes were practically begging her not to continue this. But still, she pressed on. "When I met you, and up until the battle's end… your eyes glowed blue, just like the staff. Just like Eric's eyes and Barton's eyes when they were under control. So, I'm asking again, please… _Who was controlling you_?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! My friend came to visit this weekend, and then my internet went out... I swear I will have more frequent updates from now on.
> 
> In other news, I updated my profile! Feel free to check out my accounts! I have my art accounts listed, as well as a new Insta account I have for Darcy Lewis. I'm tempted to make a Twitter too. Its gonna have eventual TaserTricks on it~ Speaking of TaserTricks, I also listed my Spotify playlist that I listen to while writing this. Feel free to check it out, and leave me any song suggestions you have for the ship in the comments!!

_“How long does it take to land this stupid jet?!”_

_“Stark is down there duking it out with a God,” Natasha snapped, flipping switches from her seat in the cockpit. “Forgive me for being hesitant to land in the middle of their testosterone fueled grudge match.”_

_Darcy let out an irritated huff, moving towards the cockpit on unstable legs. Steve had just jumped out after Stark, who had just jumped out after Thor, who had in turn stolen their pain in the ass war criminal, Loki. Seriously though, she briefly questioned their sanity over how easily they ran off without even considering the consequences. Yet here she was, ready to run off after them._

_Unfortunately for her, she had no idea how to use a parachute._

_This left her to argue with Nat about landing the plane. “Look, I know him: He will stand down if I just get a moment to talk to him-”_

_“Stark isn’t exactly one to listen to suggestions-”_

_“I’m talking about Thor!”_

_The redhead shot her a wide eyed look, before understanding crossed her expression. “You were the intern Barton mentioned, weren’t you?”_

_“Who?”_

_“The guy with the bow and arrows.”_

_“Oh, Hawk dude!” At Natasha’s quirked brow and smirk, Darcy shrugged. “I suck at names sometimes. So, are you going to land this thing?”_

_“...I better not regret this.”_

_“No promises.”_

_As soon as the landing dock opened up, she was sprinting out the hatch in a spare pair of boots she found in storage locker, holding up the edges of the dress Loki had transformed. She stumbled about in the woods, struggling to see in the darkness, but she found it relatively easy to follow the sounds of a distant fight._

_She heard the shouts grow up ahead, and she finally broke into a clearing just in time to hear, “You want me to put the hammer down?!”_

_“THOR.”_

_Frozen just before he leapt in the air, the spinning hammer, Mew-Mew or something like that, slowing to a halt, Thor stared incredulously at the young woman. “Lady Darcy?”_

_“Jesus, take a chill pill, Thor!” she shouted in exasperation. “Quit destroying Bambi and Thumper’s home.”_

_Utter confusion crossed the blonde god’s face, but the moment was interrupted by none other than Stark’s mouth. “Darcy!” Crawling up out of the hole Thor had thrown him into, Stark continued to yell at her. “What the hell are you doing out here?!”_

_“I’m here saving your ass, Tony-”_

_Steve came jogging up to her side, sitting a hand on her shoulder. “Ma’am, you should really be waiting back with Agent Romanov in the plane-”_

_Shaking off his hand she pointed a finger in his face. “I’m not a damsel in distress who is going to sit back while you guys continue to have some dick measuring contest!” Spinning around from the now blushing Steve, she waved her arms angrily at them all. “Do you guys even know where in the hell Loki is?!”_

_Watching their eyes widen as they all went stiff, she knew they had actually forgotten about the God of Mischief. Her jaw tightened as she shot glares at them all, before they all noticed the lone figure sitting casually on the cliffside watching the entire ordeal with an amused expression._

_Clearing his throat, Rogers announced, “Let’s get him back on the ship ASAP. Thor, was it?” The God of Thunder nodded his head in acknowledgment. “We’d like for you to come back with us and assist us in taking care of the situation with Loki. We’re your allies, not your enemies.”_

_“Friends of Lady Darcy are friends of mine,” he declared in a booming voice. “Let me retrieve my brother, then we can head back to the aircraft.” With that, he spun his hammer and leapt up onto the cliff, seeming to have a brief conversation with Loki._

_Tony took this as a chance to approach Darcy. “You have a real knack for running head first into danger.”_

_Smirking, she quipped, “Look who’s talking: you just tried to duke it out with the God of Thunder.”_

_“I believe I was doing_ just _fine.”_

_She heard Thor land and approach with his brother, but never broke eye contact with Tony. WIth a shit eating grin, she haughtily declared, “Yeah, but out of the two of us, I’m the only one who actually knocked him unconscious.”_

_“I’m sorry, you_ WHAT _.”_

* * *

“Why is everyone so calm right now?”

Settling back into her chair, Natasha regarded the pacing billionaire with a steady gaze. “And exactly how should we be reacting, Tony?”

Running his hands through his hair, he spoke frantically, his mind spinning. “I don’t know, shouldn’t be out searching? Shouldn’t we- shouldn’t we be trying to figure out how to find him?” Moving to slam his hands down on the counter, he snapped, “We have a homicidal God on the loose with the glowing mystical box and everyone suddenly stopped caring!”

“What else can we do?” Steve asked with a sigh. “You and Banner have been scanning for the Tesseract non-stop for the past two days with no results, and Loki hasn’t shown up on any facial recognition programs.”

“I know, I know, I just…” Tony finally stopped pacing, placing his palms on the briefing table and letting his head hang low.

Rising from his chair, Thor moved to Tony and clapped a hand on his shoulder. “You need not worry, my friend. Lady Darcy is in good hands. Loki will take good care of her.”

“And how do you know that?” Barton chimed in, speaking for the first time this meeting. He had been rather quiet since the battle, still dealing with the after effects of the mind control.

Confidently, Thor replied, “Because, never once did he treat her as an enemy.”

All at once, several voices rang out, “He _stabbed_ her!”

Shaking his head, he quickly defended the God of Mischief. “I was there, my friends. He did not mean to hurt her, and his regret was true. Had he truly thought her an enemy, which she gave every opportunity for him to think so, he would have left her for dead: not healed her, resisting the control he was under just to save her.”

“Are we still considering that angle?” Banner asked curiously. “That he was just another puppet in all this?”

Sobering, Thor nodded his head gravely. “Aye. I know my brother, what he is capable of. This plan, this attack: it was sloppy and ill planned. Nothing like the plans he has calculated in the past. I truly believe Lady Darcy’s idea that he was also under the control of another.”

“Though the idea of defending that monster makes me sick,” Barton quietly commented from the corner. “Loki did regularly have ‘contact’ with whoever gave him that army. Like, psychically or something. Every time he ended a conversation, he looked sick, even terrified. Whoever they were, they were a nasty bunch that even Loki dreaded dealing with.”

“There is very little that can openly scare my brother,” Thor remarked quietly.

“My biggest concern,” Steve chimed in. “Is this: Loki _failed_. Not only did he fail, but he let us get his spear, and he ran off with the Tesseract. Exactly what kind of retaliation are we going to get for that?”

“That’s what I would like to know.” All eyes turned to the figure in the doorway, and Fury slowly strolled in, hands behind his back and his usual stoic expression on his face. “Unfortunately for us, our biggest lead is currently MIA and until we can confirm otherwise, has a hostage with him.”

Thor rose stiffly from his chair in protest. “Lady Darcy is _not_ his hostage-”

“Well, I highly doubt that Loki is _her_ hostage,” Fury countered, giving the God a stern look. “And considering the fact that we haven’t heard jack shit from her since she disappeared while clinging to his leg like a damn koala, hostage sounds like a decent scenario.”

Thor looked ready to speak, but Nat intervened. “Look, we are actually leaning towards your idea that he wouldn’t hurt her, but the longer they stay out of contact, the worse the situation looks, Thor.”

Sinking back into the chair, Thor sighed heavily. “It is honestly not surprising that we have not heard from him.”

Eye narrowing, Fury slowly asked, “And why is that?...” 

“In the past, whenever he found something that he found… _intriguing_ , he liked to have time… alone… to get to understand it.”

Silence fell over the room, and Stark quietly asked, “Are you saying he might have gone off the grid to _study_ Darcy?” 

Scratching his head nervously, Thor said, “Well… I have never seen him show interest in a woman like this before, so…”

Everyone started shouting at once, arguments flaring over this. Stark sat in wide eyed, silent denial, trying in vain to process the idea of a God trying to woo his assistant. But the arguments all died off as Jarvis chimed in over the intercom.

“Sir, you have a phone call wanting to be patched through.”

Shaking off his shock, he remarked, “Kind of busy right now, Jarvis.”

“Sir, it is your emergency line. I also took the liberty of analyzing the voice to ensure that the caller was who they said they were, and I can confirm that it is Miss Lewis on the line.”

“.... _What?!_ ”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyyyy so I finally got this chapter done! As a head's up, I'm kind of planning another Darcy/Loki story... as well as a Loki/OC story... so keep an eye out for that! Anyway, let me know what y'all think! I kind of struggled with this chapter.

" _Let me talk to him."_

" _I'm sorry, what was that?" Tony spun around, staring at Darcy as if she had grown another head. "It almost sounded like you wanted to talk to the maniac that just tried to stab you with a magic spear."_

_Rolling her eyes, Darcy shoved back from the computer, her rolling chair spinning around to face her mentor. "He_ threatened _, but I don't think he was actually going to do it."_

" _Are you_ defending _him?!"_

" _What?" Shaking her head, she let out a frustrated sigh. "No, I'm not. He's a homicidal psycho, yes: but unfortunately, he's a homicidal maniac that is currently in possession of a magic cube of infinite power. We need to get him to talk-"_

_Just then, her words were cut off by the sound of the lab doors sliding open, Director Fury striding through the doors, followed closely by Agent Coulson. He looked ready to speak, but he was interrupted by the overhead speaker. Loud music started blaring, and he scrunched his brows together as he angrily asked, "Is that the Imperial Death March?"_

_Bruce stared in confusion, and Tony struggled to contain his laughter. Coulson looked only marginally thrown off by the whole thing. "Mr. Stark, this your doing, I presume?"_

_Holding up his hands, he quickly defended himself. "Not me! I've been helping Bruce with scanning for the Tesseract!"_

_All eyes then slowly turned towards the young brunette, who casually sat in her chair, swinging her legs as she played with the ends of her hair. "In my defense," she began coyly, "You left me unattended and bored with a very expensive computer."_

" _Ms. Lewis," Fury began quietly, his anger slowly building. "Are you telling me that you hacked our SHIELD servers to download a Star Wars theme song?"_

" _No…" she drawled, grinning impishly. "I'm telling you that I hacked SHIELD's intercom system to give everyone a theme song." Crossing her legs and straightening in her chair, she shrugged and casually declared, "The encryption for the P.A. systems are horribly below standards."_

" _You gave everyone a_ what _?!"_

_As if to answer his question, Captain Rodgers chose that moment to come walking through the doors, and the Star Spangled Banner started blaring throughout the room. Spinning around in confusion, Cap shouted, "Why does that keep happening?"_

" _Miss Lewis," Coulson said calmly, eyeing Fury who seemed ready to blow a fuse. "We are dealing with a very high risk situation, we cannot really afford these kinds of distractions."_

" _So you're telling me that a little random music is hindering our progress to stop Loki," she began in a tense, deadpan tone. "But preventing the one person who has gotten information out of Rudolph_ isn't _hindering anything."_

_Fury barked out a laugh. "You aren't trained for this, Lewis-"_

" _No, I'm not trained." Rising from her chair, she stormed up to Fury. He towered over her, yet she stared him straight in the face. Her hands twitched nervously, and she struggled to keep from flinching at his stern, cold look, but she refused to back down. "I am not an agent, not some superhero: compared to all of you, I am nothing."_

" _Darcy…" Stark began, but she held up a hand, stopping him while refusing to look away from Fury._

" _You saw the plane ride back, both before and after the run in with Thor," she continued. "He barely spoke except to threaten people. But he_ talked _to me. Like, an actual conversation. And not to brag or anything," she added with a half hysteric laugh. "But I think I held my own fairly well in that conversation."_

_Fury remained unphased, his face not changing once during the conversation. "You better have wiped every trace of yourself out of my system by the time I'm back, or else Stark is going to have to get you a nice lawyer."_

" _Pffft," Stark began, seeming unphased by the threat. "I could have her out of jail within an hour."_

" _What about Guantanamo?"_

" _...that might take a little longer."_

" _Wipe me out of the system yourself: it's not like I encrypted it." Sidestepping Fury and Coulson, she stormed off towards the door._

" _Where are you going?" Steve asked, concern in his voice._

" _To find Thor. Maybe he can see some sense," she snapped. "Also, maybe he can take a damn joke."_

_And with that, she stormed out the door, music blasting over the PA systems behind her._

"' _Remember the Name', nice song choice," Tony said with admiration in his voice. After noticing the building rage on Fury's face, Tony quickly asked, "Please don't arrest her, she's the best trainee I've had."_

" _Likely the only one that could put up with your antics," Steve muttered._

_Before Tony could interject, Fury bluntly stated, "Honestly, Stark, I don't think Guantanamo would be left standing if I let her on the premises."_

* * *

"So, I'm asking again, please… _Who was controlling you_?"

His face looked strained, almost frustrated. He ran his hands over his face, heaving a heavy sigh. "Anything… you can ask anything but that."

"But-"

" _No_ , Darcy…"

"Its impor-"

" _I said NO._ "

She jumped, startled by the sudden rage in his voice. Her fingers clutched at the sheets, her blood running cold. For the first time since she woke up, she was harshly reminded of exactly _what_ kind of situation she was in. Loki was not a normal man: nothing like Stark or SHIELD or, hell, even _Thor_. He was his own beast entirely, and she kept forgetting how little she knew of him.

It was so very easy to forget…

Seeing the unease on her face, Loki had the decency to look guilty. "I… I apologize… I just…" Running his hands over his face, he let out a long heaving sigh. "Just please… not that."

Willing herself to relax, she swallowed heavily and forced her fingers to disentangle themselves from the sheets. "Can… I at least ask why?..."

His body was still, barely moving, aside from his hands dropping to his sides. Eyes staring straight at nothing, he finally spoke quietly, his words measured. "It would not be safe."

Her face scrunching in confusion, she countered, " _Nothing_ is safe. Whoever it is, they have access to _armies_. Literal armies! They took control over _you,_ even: a freaking god! I doubt that whoever managed that would just sit back and give up." Leaning towards him, she continued, her voice pleading. "We need to get in front of this: the others would back you up. Hell, I'll fight them if I have to-"

"Darcy, what I meant is that it would not be safe for _you_."

"...what?"

Finally, he turned his face toward her. "Knowledge is _power_. And in this case, the more you know, the more likely you will be hurt." His eyes dropped to her hands. "It matters not that I know. I can protect myself, should it come to it. You, however, cannot."

"That's bullshit."

His shoulders stiffened defensively. "I am _trying_ to protect you."

"Loki," she huffed in irritation. "What good is protecting me if this guy comes back and burns my planet to the ground."

"I can protect you from that."

A loud crack sounded in the room, and the Trickster God stared with a slack jaw at the woman who had just slapped him across the face. "How _dare_ you-"

"How _dare_ I?" Her voice was low and filled with rage. "What about you? How _little_ do you think of me?"

He scoffed. "I am _trying_ to protect you: I would think that shows that I hold you in _some_ regard-"

"What makes you think I would be okay with just standing by and letting my planet _burn_?"

His eyes widened, and he realized his error. His voice went quiet and lost its edge. "I did not mean it like that…"

Making an annoyed huff, she flopped back against the pillows. She winced slightly at the pain from the move, but she tried to play it off. "Well, how exactly did you mean it?"

Glancing from the corner of his eyes, she could see the wheels turning in his mind, trying to think his words out. "You gave me a chance." Rising from the bed, he moved to pace across the room, his shoulders tense. "Despite everything I did, despite the threat I was to your kind, you seemed to _see_ me." Laughing quietly, he muttered, "You barely knew me, but you knew I was not in control of my actions."

Smirking, she half heartedly joked, "Well, I did have to pester Thor to learn more about you…"

His jaw clenched slightly at the mention of Thor, but his face seemed more… _defeated_ than anything else. "I have burned more bridges than I care to admit. So the idea of allowing the one person who showed me mercy to be harmed…"

Biting her lip, she stared at him for a moment. Then she patted the bed next to her. "Sit. Please." Smiling faintly, she added, "Your pacing is going to wear a hole in the floor."

Staring at her with a bewildered expression, he moved to sit carefully on the edge of the bed. Neither said a word, and both looked away from the other. Eventually, she spoke again, her fingers brushing the healing wound under her shirt. "Is that why you saved me?"

He smirked. "You were also amusing."

" _Hey_!" Grabbing a pillow, she whacked his shoulder with it. "Jerk…" He remained unphased, just smiling impishly at her. Realizing that she should probably keep this good will and come back to her question later, she decided to change subjects. "So… I have a different question?"

"Oh?" He looked visibly relieved. "What would that be?"

"Can I make a phone call?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayyyyy, so I posted another Darcy/Loki story, one which is going to be a bit darker as the story develops. Also, I kind of had a couple more story ideas pop into my head.... I'm a little obsessed with this ship. So, feel free to check out the new story and look out for other stories in the future!
> 
> Side note, this chapter took forever to write. I rewrote it like three times...

" _Thor!"_

_Turning away from the monitor, Thor gave a hearty grin to the young woman who came striding into the room. "Lady Darcy, my friend!" Holding his arms out to give her a bear hug, he bellowed, "I apologize for not being able to speak to you properly earlier."_

" _No worries, big guy," she replied, hugging him back. "Things are crazy right now." Eyes glancing over towards the screen, she frowned. "How long has he been staring at the camera like that?"_

_Thor quickly spun back to the screen and stared gravely. "He was sitting just a moment ago…" His gaze drifted back towards her. "Darcy, did something occur with you and Loki?"_

" _You mean besides being held hostage and me shooting him?" she quipped. "I've never met him before that gala."_

_Moving to drop down into a chair, he stared at her with a solemn expression. "The gown you were wearing…"_

_Huffing loudly, she snapped, "That_ wasn't _my gown." Moving to sit down next to him, she ran her fingers through her hair. "He changed my gown with his magic after he dragged me out of the gala to harass the crowd of people. I didn't exactly consent to that."_

_Thor looked at the table, seeming to think for a minute. "Darcy… I did not want to bring this up in front of the others. But that style of gown… " Looking back up, he looked at her with concern in his eyes. "That style is reserved for not just royalty, but for_ queens _."_

_Her blood went cold. "You are not suggesting what I think you are suggesting."_

" _What I am suggesting," he began slowly. "Is that Loki knew of your importance to us, and knew you would be a good pawn to taunt us with."_

" _He knew my name."_

_He looked surprised for a moment, but then it melted into defeat. "He must have recognized your name from your time with me."_

_Shrugging, she added, "It probably didn't help that I worked for Stark too. The Hawk guy he hypnotized with probably told him about me." Playing with the tips of her hair, she struggled to make eye contact with him. "Thor… I need to know… what was he like?"_

_He looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"_

" _Before… this," she tried to elaborate. "Before your fall. Was he always so…?"_

" _Murderous?" His voice was tense. "Insane?" Thor seemed to stare off in the distance, lost in thought. "No. Loki had always been different, but he was loyal. We cared for one another. He may have never been my brother in blood, but he has always been my brother in my heart."_

" _What made him this way?" she asked quietly. "Something happened to him. People don't just turn into…_ this _overnight."_

" _I am partially to blame," Thor remarked sadly. "Loki grew up feeling as though he were in my shadow. In our realm, his skill in magic is often looked down upon as a woman's skill, and he often was looked down upon for not following the path of a warrior."_

_Huffing, Darcy snipped, "That is highly misogynistic. And who cares if he does magic? So long as he good at it, and I'm guessing that he was."_

" _Aye, Loki was a master at his craft," Thor replied in a reminiscing tone. "Though he often found himself acting out for recognition, hence how he became known for his mischief and chaos. But the turning point…is when he decided himself a monster."_

_Thor's voice trailed off, and she leaned forward, grabbing his hand. "Keep going, please."_

_He looked towards her, his face scrunched as if he were studying her. "Why do you wish to know all of this?"_

" _Because, I want to question him."_

_He suddenly tensed. "No, Lady Darcy. I will not allow this."_

" _What is with everyone and them not trusting me?!" she snapped, pushing up from the chair. Though she tried to angrily stare him down, the effect was generally useless given that he was just as tall as her standing up while he was still seated firmly in his chair._

" _It is not about trusting you," he explained in a tired tone. "It is entirely about trusting_ him. _He may be my brother, but I know he is not in his right mind. I will not allow the chance of him hurting you._ "

" _He is locked in a box, Thor." Rolling her eyes, she crossed her arms over her chest in irritation. "And I'm a big girl, I can handle a few insults, not that I think he is going to use any."_

" _What do you mean?"_

" _You saw him on the plane." Dropping down into the chair, she leaned towards him, eyes pleading. "He was hostile to everyone: everyone but_ me _."_

" _...you two bickered like children for most of the time."_

" _But it was conversation!" she insisted. "He dropped his guard. He acted… I don't know, like-"_

" _Like Loki before his fall."_

" _Exactly! I think. I didn't know him then...hence why I need you to tell me."_

_He was quiet, contemplating, staring her down. Then, he firmly stated, "I will tell you as much about him as possible, and I will help you to speak with him. But the_ moment _you lose control of the conversation, you will_ leave _. Or else, I will come in there and drag you out myself."_

" _All I'm asking for is a chance."_

" _I pray that this chance works out in the end."_

* * *

"Jarvis, answer the call!"

"Now wait a minute-"

"What the hell do you mean 'wait a minute,'" Tony snapped, rounding on the Captain.

"How is she calling us?" he asked, trying to think this through. "I doubt he would allow that and risk his location."

"Maybe she escaped?..." Banner offered.

Natasha added, "That or he let her go. He was always soft on her."

"Aye, he likely set her loose after he escaped," Thor said. "He has no reason to harm her."

Steve did not look convinced. "What if it's a trap?"

Stark looked at him as if he had just insulted his mother. "How in the _hell_ would a simple _phone call_ be a trap?" Before Rodgers could interject, Stark cut him off and continued. "If she asks us to meet her at a secondary location, _then_ we will look into the possibilities of a trap and figure out a plan. But for now, we don't know how much time she has."

"He's right," Barton chimed in. "Loki is a possessive creep: if she escaped, he is likely looking for her. We can argue details later."

Tony clapped his hands together. "Yep, the majority has spoken. Jarvis, answer the call!"

"Sir, I answered when you first asked," the A.I. replied with almost an amused tone. "Miss Lewis is on speaker phone."

They all went quiet, and then a small sound of muffled laughter chimed in over the P.A. system. "I was beginning to wonder how long you guys were going to be arguing."

"Darcy?" Tony called out. "Are you okay, kid?"

"I'm okay-ish," came the honest reply. "My side still hurts like hell, but Loki has been reinforcing the spell which helps dull the pain."

"Loki is still helping you?" Nastasha asked bluntly.

"Oh yeah, totally: hell, it's almost like he's spoiling me," she chirped coyly. "You should see the digs he has set up for me, the place looks hella expensive and plush. He also got me this amazingly tasty sushi…" Her voice became muffled as they could faintly hear chewing.

Though he seemed minorly confused at some of the choices of words she used, Steve asked, "Do you know where you are?"

"I know that where I am calling from is far away from where he was keeping me," she replied truthfully. "Apparently he was keeping me at his private hideaway so he didn't want you tracking the call there."

Stark frowned as a blip popped up on his wrist PDA. "So the room he was keeping you in isn't in Tokyo?"

"Nope," she chirped. "Is that where I am now? Wow, you ran that call trace fast. He teleported here to a hotel room to call, so I wasn't sure." More chewing, and she mused, "I guess that explains the amazing sushi."

"He left you at a hotel?" Rodgers asked pointedly.

"Uh, not really," she replied. "Well, I mean, I'm _in_ a hotel room, but he didn't leave." The Avengers went quiet, all processing what was going on. He still had her: she was not free of him, yet he allowed her to call them. Before they could think of any questions, they heard her say, "Loki, say hi!"

"You are going to cause them to have a fit, my dear," came the smooth response, with a hint of amusement on the end.

"Let her go!" Stark snapped, hands slamming on the table.

A scoff sounded over the line, before the reply, "I am not holding her against her will." A loud, feminine huff said otherwise, so he elaborated. "I just wish to keep her till her wounds are healed. Then, I will drop her off wherever she wishes."

Barton asked what everyone had been thinking. "Why?"

Silence. Then, quietly, he said, "Because she is important to me." Then, his tone completely changed. "Oh, it appears agents are preparing to storm the building. SHIELD does work very quickly. I can sense them gathering around the building."

Stark bolted upright. "Wait, how?! My lines should be secure-" He stopped mid sentence and slowly turned his head towards the two spies at the table. "You two have a _lot_ of explaining to do."

"As amusing as listening to you all bicker would be," Loki droned over the line. "I have no intention of being caught by SHIELD today. So, this is where I leave. Expect Lady Darcy to be healed and returned in peak condition within a week." And the line clicked, signaling that he had hung up.

Everyone at the table just sat still for a moment, all processing, before Romanoff chimed in, "Well, that didn't go as expected."

Chuckling, Banner remarked, "Does it ever go as planned with us?"


	8. Chapter 8

_Not bothering to look, Loki's gaze remained rooted on the ceiling as the sound of sliding doors reached his ears. Someone quietly entered the room outside his cell, slowly approaching the glass viewing window._

" _Are you here to_ interrogate _me again, Director Fury?" he called out in a mocking manner. "I do not know if I am in the mood at the moment."_

" _Umm…" The familiar, feminine voice seemed uncertain and hesitant. "I actually just stopped by to say hi."_

_Head slowly turning, his eyes narrowed in confusion as he stared at the young woman. "Well now," he drawled in an amused tone. "This is certainly unexpected…" With swift, elegant movements, he was up and striding to the glass, grinning widely. "I did not expect them to be smart enough to utilize you, Miss Lewis."_

" _Smart?" she asked in an exasperated tone. "They act like letting me near you would end with either you escaping or murdering me." After a pause, she shrugged and added, "Or both. Most likely both."_

_Tilting his head quizically, he asked, "If that is their opinion, then why did they let you near me?" At her silent and nervous expression, he let out an almost sinful laugh. "They do not know that you are here, do they?"_

_Biting her lip, she stepped closer to the glass, before dropping to sit in front of it. "I don't exactly have a lot of time before they figure out I'm here, and I have questions."_

_He stared down at her as if she were a puzzle he was trying to solve, but slowly, he dropped to sit as well, a faint smirk still plastered across his face. "Ask. For you, I might even consider being honest for once."_

_She gave him an exaggerated glare, but ignored his comment. "Why do you want Earth?" she asked in a genuinely curious tone. "Compared to what I've heard of other realms, we don't seem that special."_

_He shrugged as if it were obvious. "Your planet is rather resilient, despite how fractured the people are. You all fight and kill both your own people and planet at an astounding rate. But, imagine… imagine if it were united under one leader." His face turned upward, and his eyes closed as he seemed to think about that future. "One unifying power to help direct your race. No more war, no more pollution...imagine what your world could accomplish."_

_Grabbing the ends of her hair, she began to fiddle with it. "You know, on paper, that does sound like a nice idea. But, you keep looking at the big picture, not the details." Sighing, she asked, "Humanity is known for its individuality, its various cultures. Most humans would rather die than lose their freedom. How much death would you have to justify in order to create this fairytale world?"_

_His eyes opened, and his gaze dropped to meet her. The brilliant blue of his eyes stared back, and it felt as if he were digging into her soul. "I do not wish to squash individuality. I come from a realm where straying from the ideal results in you being treated as less than. But freedom… is that not a small price to pay for peace?"_

" _It's an impossible price." She shook her head, scowling. "No one would willingly give that."_

_He seemed to regard her. "Did you not give up your freedom to ensure that I would not hurt civilians?"_

_She seemed startled. "What?..."_

" _At the gala, I gave you a choice. Stay close, obey me, or you would die. You were so willing to die for your freedom, yet the moment I threatened others, mere_ strangers _, you gave up your freedom so easily…"_

" _That's different!"_

" _How so?" His voice grew louder, more insistent. "You claim that it is different, yet I speak of a world with no war, no unnecessary death, all for the price of your freedom, and you throw it in my face. Tell me, Miss Lewis…" The way he said her name both made her want to bolt while sent shivers down her spine . "Tell me how those few strangers at that gala were worth more than the hundreds of people currently dying needlessly everyday on your planet?"_

" _Stop it," she whispered, so quietly that even she could barely hear it._

" _Explain it to me? Is it because you would see it?"_

" _Please-"_

" _Is it easier to bear the death of thousands that you can disassociate from versus the few within your sight?"_

" _Don't-"_

" _Tell me what the cost of your freedom truly is." He rose to stand, towering over her. "Tell me what price I have to pay for your freedom, and I shall pay it in a heartbeat. Everyone has a price, and I will do what is needed to have every_ single _human grovel at my feet,_ begging _for me to take their freedom. But your freedom, oh my sweet, innocent Miss Lewis…"_

_She stared in horror as he dropped to kneel before her, a small but wicked grin on his face. "Tell me your price, or else I will kill anyone and everyone in my path until I find it. Tell me what is required to own your freedom, Miss Darcy Lewis, and I will gladly pay it…"_

_She suddenly became very aware of the tears streaming down her face, and she quickly moved to rub them off. "Why," she asked in a croaky voice. "Why me?"_

" _Because you_ fascinate _me." Chuckling at her bewildered expression, he continued. "Do you know that you span nearly all of those so called Avengers' files? In some form or another, you are mentioned in their stories."_

" _What…" she scrunched her brow, confused. "I highly doubt that-"_

" _You first appear in Thor's file as Ms. Foster's intern. Mentioned several times, given no name." He said the last part as if it were an abhorrent oversight. "Then you appear in Coulson and Barton's notes as, again, Ms. Foster's intern, with no name."_

_Darcy began to since a trend, and her heart sunk. "You hopped into Tony Stark's file as his assistant-"_

" _I am_ not _his assistant!" she snapped defensively, her spine straightening as she glared at him. "I am-"_

" _His apprentice, yes," Loki amended in a placating manner. "However, they did not see fit to give you that title, let alone your name, once again. And, once again, you make it into the notes of Natasha's files as she did recon on Stark- she_ did _have the decency to list you as his apprentice, but no name. Your last appearance in SHIELD files would be a footnote made about you submitting shield designs for the Captain… as Stark's apprentice."_

_Her blood felt cold, and she simply stared ahead at him in confusion. "Why are you telling me this?" she asked numbly. "And how… how did you know my name?"_

" _I am telling you this," he began in an almost a kind tone. "Because you deserve to know. You are working for an agency that does not value the potential you show. You alone managed to span all of their so called_ heroes _files, yet they did not think you even worthy of a footnote."_

_She began to shrink into herself as the words hit home, and she struggled to hold back tears. He had known_ exactly _where to hit her: her self worth. And she berated herself for letting him get the best of her._

" _As to why I knew your name, Darcy Lewis," he continued in the same soft tone. She refused to meet his gaze as she struggled to reign in her tears. "It is because no one else seemed to think you were even worthy of having it remembered."_

_Finally looking up at him, she stared blankly at his 'concerned' expression. "If this is some scheme to get me on your side-"_

" _This is no scheme. Merely an observation I made."_

" _Why would you care?" she demanded. "Why does one stupid little human matter to you?!"_

_He stayed silent for a moment, as if digesting her words. "...perhaps for the sentiment."_

" _...what?"_

" _I know what it's like to be shoved into the shadows."_

_Before she could ask him to elaborate, the doors slid open and several SHIELD agents stormed in, guns drawn with Fury right in the middle of it. He stormed directly up to her and snatched her harshly by the arm. "You and I are going to have a_ long _talk."_

_Smiling weakly, she asked, "Please tell me the Guantanamo thing was a joke?"_

" _When I'm through with you," he began, matching her towards the door. "You will_ wish _you were in Guantanamo-"_

" _Director." Everyone froze, slowly turning towards the glass cell. Loki stared back at them, a feral grin on his face, but a cold fury brewing in his eyes. "Should any harm come to her, I can assure you, you and every miserable creature on this ship will regret it."_

_Fury masked his face well, though Darcy could feel his hand tighten on her forearm, causing her to wince. "Duly noted. But just to let you know… we don't negotiate with terrorists."_

_And with that, he harshly yanked her from the room, causing her to cry out in pain, as she heard him angrily call out from the cell behind her._

* * *

A flash of shimmering green light followed by a loud peal of laughter. A pair of bodies formed from the light, and soon, they condensed to take shape. Loki kept a firm grip around Darcy's waist, ensuring she did not lose her balance. He was not quite sure yet as to how well she took to her teleportation magic.

Clinging to the front of his shirt, Darcy continued to laugh, a look of mischievous delight across her face. "Oh, what I wouldn't give to see the expressions in that room during that call!" Her laughter tapered off as she quipped, "You could have heard a pin drop on the line when they realized you were there."

His arms still wrapped around her, he let out a low chuckle. "They acted as if they expected me to chain you in a dungeon somewhere."

Still grinning impishly, she countered, "Well, I may not be chained, but…" Gesturing around her towards the familiar site of the room he had been keeping her in. "I'm still a bit limited on where I can go."

Sighing heavily, he countered, "The more you rest, the faster you can heal-"

She poked him in the chest. "Just admit it. You're being a mother hen."

"...I beg your pardon?"

Rolling her eyes, she elaborated. "It's a phrase. It means that you are fussing over me."

He huffed and began to guide her to the bed. "If ensuring you heal properly means that I am fussing, then I shall continue to fuss." Guiding her to sit, he added, "It is my fault that you are in this state, and by the Norns, I will right this."

She dropped onto the bed, staring up at him sadly. "You know this isn't your fault, right?"

"...I _stabbed_ you-"

"You know what I mean!" she snipped. "You weren't in your right mind. And I know you don't want to elaborate on what happened, but that's not going to change the fact that I still _know_ that it's not your fault."

He stared at her quietly for a minute, and then he leaned forward and pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead. "Get some rest, my dear."

She stared in dumbfounded shock as he disappeared in a flash of green light.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little short, but we are about to get into the real meat of the story, so brace yourself... just a few more chapters till things kick it into high gear.

_Soon, Darcy found herself being shoved into the lab. Stumbling forward, she found herself being caught by none other than Thor, who had been waiting for her in the labs and looked none too pleased at the manhandling. Before he could jump to her rescue, however, Darcy snapped, "Jeez, Fury, you sure know how to treat a lady…"_

" _You're lucky I didn't have you shot on the spot for that stunt," he replied in a deadpan tone. "And you aren't exactly a lady, Miss Lewis."_

" _Oooo, you actually know my name," she quipped back sarcastically. "What a joy, I'm finally important enough to be on SHIELD's radar."_

_Fury's eye narrowed. "Don't you start-"_

" _Start what, exactly?" she asked. "Start pointing out that I was right? I got more out of him in five minutes than any of you have in 24 hours-"_

" _And at what cost?" Fury countered, his voice raising. "You barely got anything out of him-"_

" _I would have gotten more if you hadn't of come in guns blazing-"_

" _And all you accomplished is making yourself a target for him!"_

" _I am_ not _a target-"_

" _I may only have one eye, but I'm not blind!" His voice was in full shouting mode as he strode up to her, towering over her short frame. "He looked at you like a wolf stalking a rabbit."_

_Holding up her wrists to show her fully charged bracelet gauntlets, she remarked, "This 'rabbit' isn't exactly unarmed."_

" _And you think he's going to fall for that again."_

" _No, I'm not an idiot." She huffed, crossing her arms as she stared him down. "But we are running out of options, Fury, and I'm the best bet at getting a rapport with him."_

" _Defending you, an untrained civilian, would be too much of a drain on time and resources-"_

" _Then don't!"_

_Finally, another voice chimed in from the side. "Uh, excuse me, Darce?" All eyes turned to Tony who was staring at her like a disapproving father. "What the hell do you mean 'don't'?"_

" _Exactly that, Tony," she replied tiredly. "I know the risks, I know what I'm getting myself into. But you all heard what Thor said. Loki has an_ army _. And with the Tesseract missing, we can't exactly afford to not be taking risks."_

" _I commend you on your bravery," Thor commented quietly. "But I can't with good faith risk your life. Loki is… he has changed so much in recent years. If he were to hurt you in anyway... " Shaking his head gravely, he spoke with a finality to his tone. "I will not allow this."_

" _Seconded!" Tony chimed in._

" _Well. Glad to know everyone has faith in me," she muttered darkly._

_Reaching towards her, Thor added, "I do not mean this as a slight against you-"_

_She side stepped his hand. "You know, I've always known that everyone thinks I'm an incompetant idiot."_

_Thor's eyes looked pained while Tony started moving towards her, saying, "Kid-"_

"I am not a child _."_

_Tony froze, eyes wide as she continued to lecture him. "And I am certainly not_ your ' _kid' either. I'm a grown ass woman, standing here trying to help save the fucking world from some alien war, and you guys just want to sit here and play this patronizing bullshit on me. I don't care about the risks, because at the end of the day, if we don't stop him, we are_ all _as good as dead."_

_Turning back to Fury, she snapped, "So from my viewpoint, the only one wasting time and resources is_ you _. Get off your ass and utilize the resources you have: we don't have the time to waste. And if something happens to me, don't lose sleep over it. I_ chose _to help. My grown adult ass made this decision. Don't treat me like an idiot who doesn't see the bigger picture."_

_She stormed out of the room, all the men staring after her with no idea what to say. Banner spoke up first, quietly commenting, "Oh yeah, she's basically your daughter Tony."_

" _I skipped the fun child stage and got the 'stick it to the man' young woman." Swallowing heavily, Stark added, "I'm proud but the utter terror for her well being is overriding that right now."_

" _Perhaps we have not been giving her the credit she deserves," Thor chimed in. "Lady Darcy has been assisting us all from the sidelines for some time now. While not in the traditional since, she is a fine warrior in her own way."_

_Fury had been quietly fuming, and simply added, "I don't know whether to be impressed or to kick her over the side of the helicarrier and be done with it."_

" _Don't even think about it," Tony threatened as the lab doors slid back open, Natasha and Steve striding in. "I'm still pissed at how you were dragging her in here."_

_Grimacing, Steve chimed in, "Is this about Miss Lewis?"_

" _Aye," Thor replied glumly. "She is angry with us."_

_Natasha let out a snort. "I would be too if someone barged in and wrecked my rapport with a subject."_

_Brows darting up, Tony remarked, "Wow, wait a minute. You thought she was doing a good job in there?! He was ripping her self esteem to shreds!"_

_Shrugging, the Widow countered, "While she does need help in building her resolve, she does show great potential for interrogation. Her natural charm and quick wit is near impossible to teach."_

_Fury barked out a laugh. "Natural charm?"_

" _Sir, imagine any other subordinate in her place, and you would not have let them get away with half the things Darcy does."_

_Fury did not reply, but the glare on his face spoke volumes._

" _I have to agree with Nat," Steve chimed in, though he sounded reluctant about it. "Though I hate the idea of putting a civilian in the line of fire… we are running out of options."_

_The room fell silent, and then Fury gave a defeated sigh, moving to head out of the room. Reaching up to his communicator, he ordered, "Someone get me eyes on Darcy Lewis. We need to talk."_

_Natasha followed after him, grabbing him by the arm once they were out of earshot of the lab. "Sir, I have an idea. But we don't have time to teach Darcy how to lie well enough to trick Loki… so it's an idea that would have to stay between us. As in, not allowing Darcy in on the details of the situation..."_

_Fury's eye narrowed, and he grimly remarked, "If you're about to suggest what I think you're suggesting-"_

" _It's our fastest option for her to earn a stronger rapport with Loki without risking what was built before."_

_He seemed conflicted, but his gaze hardened in resolve as Darcy's location was reported over the earpiece. "The others can't know. Certainly not Stark and Thor."_

" _Understood."_

* * *

Natasha leaned against the railing, staring off at the distant skyline. She wasn't sure how long she had been standing there, but she was savoring the calm. The silence.

It was rare for her.

Closing her eyes, she thought back to hours leading up to the battle. Natasha had done a lot of things she was not proud of in her past. The red in her ledger, she called it.

So. Much. Red.

She did not regret her actions. She knew it was necessary. Darcy had said that she would do whatever it took to help stop Loki…

She felt the eyes on her before she heard him approach. "I did something bad."

Moving forward slowly, Clint leaned forward on the railing, staring forward at the skyline just as she did. "Haven't we all?"

"I used her." Her words were clipped and formal, showing no inflection of emotion. "I used her for our gain. She was willing, but-"

"But you had no choice, Natasha."

"She nearly died."

"But she didn't, we got lucky. Don't beat yourself up about it-"

"I'm beating myself up about it because I don't think I would have regretted it had she died." Silence fell between them as Hawkeye stared at her, waiting for her to explain. "We had our backs against the wall, Clint. Loki was such a different kind of opponent, and none of us were prepared. Thousands, even millions of lives were at stake. She was an accidental weakness, and I used her, despite how she was just an innocent girl."

"Nat-"

"How am I any different from the people who made me?"

"Don't even go there." His tone was harsh, drawing her attention from the skyline to his rage filled face. "Don't ever compare yourself to those monsters. You didn't change her, you didn't break her down and build her back up. You just gave her the position and power to do what she already wanted to do. I saw the file, I talked to Fury. She was _adamant_ about helping stop him."

Calming slightly, he added in a quiet tone. "They sought to take your power over the ability to choose what you want to do. You _gave_ her the power over her own choices."

Natasha was quiet, her face unchanging. Grabbing his arm, she leaned her head against his shoulder. "I still should apologize for how I went about it."

Chuckling quietly, he remarked, "We'll find something. A good 'Thanks for housetraining the the murder God, we owe you' present."

Seeming lost in thought for a minute, she quipped, "Didn't you mention that her iPod has been locked in evidence for three years?"


	10. Chapter 10

"It still doesn't make much sense to me."

Thor glanced up from the tv, watching Stark pacing around the room yet again. The poor man had been a wreck since Darcy disappeared with his brother. Despite the fact that he knew he had no control over his brother's actions, he still felt responsible for the situation. Were it not for his faith that his brother would not harm her, he would likely be in a worse state than Stark at the moment.

"What is wrong, Man of Iron?" he queried, pausing the tv. He could see the Captain's attention perk up from the corner of the living room, glancing up from his book to the conversation.

Stark paused in his pacing, running his hands in hair. "I still don't understand how Darcy ended up with Loki without her gauntlets during the attack on the helicarrier." Turning to face the two men, he crossed his arms over his chest. "I know she is impulsive, but there is no way she would have headed there in the middle of a freaking battle while unarmed."

"That had been bothering me as well," Steve chimed in. "She never took those off before yet suddenly she didn't have them. Perhaps he disarmed her?"

Thor's eyes slowly widened as he felt a sinking in his stomach. "Neither of you had not been informed of her presence there either?"

Both of the other men slowly turned to stare at Thor. Slowly and in a quiet voice, Stark asked, "What do you mean?"

"When I went to confront Loki…" he began, nervously glancing between them. "Darcy was already there… unarmed and locked in his cell with him. I assumed the rest of you had been informed to approve that-"

"She was _what_." Thor's eyes widened, having never heard such a dark tone from the man. "Who in the _hell_ put her in with that _maniac_ -"

A feminine voice spoke up from the side of the room. "It was my idea."

Everyone turned, seeing Natasha standing in the doorway, staring them down with an unwavering gaze. "And I was the one who put her in with him."

* * *

_She let out a yelp of pain as she felt herself be half thrown, half shoved forward. Collapsing to the ground, she caught herself hard on her hands, feeling pain shoot up her arms. Fighting back tears, she looked back over her shoulder as the glass door slid shut, cold eyes staring from the otherside._

" _Nat?" The red headed agent did not even flinch at the crack in Darcy's voice. "Nat, what the hell? Why did you-"_

" _You're a security risk." The blunt reply cut off her words, and the cold eyes shifted from Darcy to the person behind her. "We can't afford to take any chances."_

" _So you're just going to lock me up?!" she half shrieked. Natasha did not respond: she simply turned around and started to walk towards the exit as the young girl stared in disbelief. Struggling to stand, she called out after Natasha, her voice panicked and desperate, but her cries were cut off as she collapsed again in pain from pushing up with her injured wrist._

_Natasha paused momentarily at Darcy's cry of pain, but then she hurriedly left without looking back._

_Darcy stared at the door numbly, absently rubbing her injured wrist. Her mind was running so fast that she couldn't think clearly. But she was sharply brought back to reality as another voice cut through the silence._

" _Well now. That was rather rude of her."_

_Her spine stiffened, and she felt her hands begin to tremble slightly. Heavy steps approached from behind, yet she refused to look behind her. He moved into her peripheral, kneeling down next to her. A hand reached out towards her wrist, and she reflexively jerked away, pulling her wrist close, but yelping sharply at the pain of the movement._

_He sighed heavily. "I have no desire to hurt you, Miss Lewis-"_

" _Darcy." The words snapped out before she could stop them._

" _...Darcy then." Holding out his palm, he asked patiently, "May I please see your wrist?"_

_With a humorless laugh, she held her hands out. "Why not? Apparently I have nowhere else to go."_

_A slight smirk grew on his lips as he gently grasped one of her wrists. Green, shimmering light, similar to what transformed her dress, traveled over her wrists, and she let out a small gasp as his eyes flashed green. As the light faded, she noticed how the pain had subsided._

" _That wrist was fractured: it should be healed now," he replied simply, as if the fact that he healed her were nothing._

" _You_ healed _it?" she asked incredulously. "How?!"_

" _Magic," came the simple reply, his eyes sparking mischievously. His hands ran along her other wrist, more green light traveling along her skin. "But honestly, it's a simple enough spell. This wrist was simply strained, by the way."_

_Her mind began to slowly mull over the fact that he so easily healed her wounds...his magic was completely unhindered and at his disposal. Quietly, she drew her hands back, slowly looking up to meet his gaze. "...you are only locked up here because you want to be, aren't you?"_

_He stared at her, his eyes searching hers, dissecting her gaze as if trying to uncover all her secrets. Finally, he spoke in a low voice. "It would be for the best that you do not dwell on that thought." As if trying to change the subject, he demanded, "Take off your jacket."_

_Her eyes slowly went wide, and then she felt an indignant rage take over. "Oh_ hell _no! I may not have my gauntlets, but that doesn't mean I can't hit you, you entitled little-"_

_He cut her off with a laugh. "Calm yourself, my dear." He grinned at her, pure amusement in his eyes, not a hint of malicious intent from past encounters. "I simply wish to check your arms for bruising. This is twice now that I have witnessed SHIELD mishandling you…" The malice flickered back into his gaze, his tone growing darker. "I will certainly have to have a word with them about this…"_

_Huffing, Darcy narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously as she clutched her jacket close. "Even if there are a couple bruises, you better not hurt them."_

_Apparently she chose the wrong words. Anger flared in his eyes, and she found herself being the target of his dark tone. "You_ defend _them? After what they did to you?"_

_Despite the little voice in her head telling her to back down, Darcy rose to meet the challenge in his voice. "Of course I do. They are good people-"_

" _Yet they treat you as if you are beneath them!" he snapped viciously, leaning in close to her. "Or did you forget that they have thrown you in here with me? A rabbit at the mercy of the wolf?"_

_Rolling her eyes, she remarked, "Even good people do shitty things. Just because they are being paranoid idiots right now, that does not mean that I'm going to turn my back on them."_

" _You are naive."_

" _Maybe," she quipped, staring him down with an unwavering gaze. "But what else can I do?"_

_He stared at her silently, appraising her. After a beat when she was beginning to grow nervous, he calmly stated, "You could join me."_

_Before she could even think to respond, a distant explosion rocked the ship, and she felt herself being thrown forward into his arms._

* * *

The next few days went by in a blur.

Loki had wanted to keep the drapes closed for as long as possible, but sensing how stir crazy Darcy was growing with each passing hour, he quickly gave into her wishes to see outside.

Darcy stared in wonder at what she called a "winter wonderland" outside of the window. Fresh snow fell down slowly in the light breeze, and she watched it fall with unhindered fascination. Before he could stop her, she swung the large window pane open, leaning out with her hand outstretched.

"What in Odin's beard are you doing?!" he yelled, wrapping his arms firmly around her shoulders with every intention of pulling her away.

But her joyous laughter stopped him. "I'm catching snowflakes!"

He remained still, his hands on her shoulders as she continued to lean out, attempting to catch the few stray flakes that fluttered past. "Why do you wish to catch them?"

She glanced up over her shoulder at him, grinning brilliantly. "I've never seen snow in person before, let alone held it."

The conversation devolved from there, and eventually, Loki found himself being led through the snow just outside his manor, Darcy bundled in fluffy layers of winter clothing which he conjured, as she excitedly chattered about the icy world around them. He could not remember a time when he was this excited about snow, perhaps when he was small, but he found himself smiling softly at her as she continued to explore.

The more time they spent together, the more he began to realize that he could not say no to her for many things. Her spirit was wild and carefree, her mind unhindered and often sporadic, a little ball of chaos stuffed inside a human body. And the more time he spent with her, the more he opened up to her. Rarely did he feel so free with anyone.

And being honest with himself, he could not remember a time when he had been this open and at ease with anyone.

Sitting around the fire on the fifth day, they sat in companionable silence, Loki reading a book while Darcy attempted to do the same, curled up next to him. Breaking the silence, she huffed irritatedly. Without looking up from his book, he asked, "What is troubling you, my dear?"

He could see her biting her lip in his peripheral, a sign she was trying to figure out how to phrase her words. She was oh so easy to read at times. "I need to get a laptop with proper encryptions set up," she finally replied.

Raising a brow, he inquired, "Oh? What for?"

Shifting in her spot, she moved and leaned her head back to where her head was in his lap, staring up at him. "I'm going through computer withdrawals, but I don't want to risk anyone tracking down your place."

He blinked in confusion, glancing back down at her. "You are almost healed: you won't have to worry about being tracked once you have returned to Stark."

Some emotion flickered across her gaze, and she quietly responded, "Oh… I forgot about that."

Wordlessly, he moved to lift up the edge of her shirt, hovering a hand over the significantly smaller wound. Just a small glimmer of light emanated from the spot, having healed tremendously in the past few days. "...you should be healed enough to return by tomorrow."

Her eyes widened a fraction. "Already?... Are you sure?"

He stared quietly at her, and he ventured to ask, "Do you not wish to leave?"

She answered his question with a question. "Do you want me to?"

* * *

"You did _what_?!" Stark was crossing the room, rage etched across his face, and Thor and Rodgers barely managed to intercept him before he reached Natasha. "Were you _trying_ to get her killed?"

Natasha never flinched. "I was _trying_ to help get Loki to drop information. He drops his guard around her."

"That doesn't mean throw her in with him at his mercy!"

"It was the only way to help build the rapport between them after the stunt Fury pulled-"

"Rapport my _ass_!" Tony snapped. "She's just a girl, and you threw her in with that _murderer_ -"

" _She_ is the one who wanted to be useful," Natasha snapped back, her voice finally raising. " _She_ is the one who asked us to stop underestimating her. _She_ knew the risks of getting involved with him, yet she still pushed for it anyway."

"Yeah well I'm certain that when she was thinking about 'risks' she didn't think about the fact that he might _stab her_ -"

"Will everyone just calm down," Steve asked placatingly, stepping between the arguing pair. "None of this helps anyone. We all made our choices, and the only thing that matters is we won, and Darcy is safe. Everything will be fine."

Stark let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah. she's 'safe' and currently MIA with the God of Chaos who is _still_ in possession of the Tesseract." Shaking his head, he added, "No offense, Cap, but you and I have very drastically different versions of the word 'fine'."

* * *

" _What the fuck was that?!" she shouted, head whipping around to glance at her surroundings._

 _Loki held her tightly from where the blast had thrown her into his arms. Pulling her up with him as he rose to stand, he absently replied, "Things are about to get a bit…_ messy _. You will stay by my side for now."_

 _Practically growling, she snapped, "Like_ hell _I will!" SHe tried to pull away, but she was no match for his grip. "Let me go!"_

_The ship rocked again, and she stumbled. Were it not for his grip on her, she likely would have fallen to the ground. "As much as I appreciate your spirit," he droned on in a slightly annoyed tone. "I will not risk your well being by setting you lose into this fire fight. So I ask again, Darcy... " He leaned in close, his face just a breath away from her own. "Will you join me?"_

_She swallowed heavily. "You know that I can't… not like this. Not with the people I care about on the line."_

_He sighed in a slightly defeated tone. "I cannot say that I did not expect that reply." One of his hands reached for her face, stroking cheek. "But when you wake, you cannot say that you were not expecting this reaction as well."_

_Before she could reply, he pressed his palm to her forehead, whispered words in a language she could not understand, and the darkness consumed her._

* * *

His hand absently stroked through her hair, not replying to her question. The air grew heavy between them, and she felt the need to try and break the silence. "What would you do if I left?"

He chuckled humorlessly. "I cannot return to Asgard, and none of the other realms hold any draw for me. And considering the crimes I have committed, I cannot exactly have a normal life, free from hiding." Seeming to think for a moment, he shrugged. "It has been a while since I explored this planet. I suppose I would just… keep running."

Her hand reached up to grab his, pulling it close as she absently traced his long fingers. She remembered back when they first met, being entranced by how sculpted they looked, like they were carved from marble. "That sounds… lonely. Running by yourself."

His hand tightened around hers. "It cannot be helped."

Her eyes moved to meet his. Shifting up, she moved to kneel in front of him while he did not move from his spot on the floor. "Are you sure?"

* * *

Stark paced away, his hands making gestures in the air as he tried to process his thinking. Why her? Why did that twisted bastard have to focus in on her? The girl was too good for him, yet he kept swooping in, stealing her away, hurting her both mentally and physically.

And Stark had been useless in protecting her the entire time.

Before the self loathing could get any worse, a heavy hand laid on his shoulder. Turning, Stark laid his eyes on Thor, a sense of understanding in the God's eyes. He was just as concerned about Lady Darcy and his role in protecting her as Stark was. Swallowing heavily, Tony managed to ask, "Are you sure he will not hurt her?"

Thor nodded slowly. "My brother is a broken man, unused to the kindness and wild nature that Lady Darcy has shown him. If you have no faith in him, for he has done little to earn it, have faith that Lady Darcy's spirit is enough to earn his loyalty."

Stark dryly laughed. "Darcy does have that quality about her. She… she grows on you."

"Aye, that she does. Know that I consider her a sister of the heart as much as I do Loki, and that my kinship to him is not clouding my judgement. if I did not think she were safe, I would not be as calm as I am now." Letting out a sad smirk, he remarked, "She is one of the few I believe could be his match."

* * *

_Her eyes slowly began to open, groaning at the pain in her head. She could hear the distant sounds of gunshots and sirens, and she knew that things had gone terribly wrong._

_Blinking away the fogginess of her mind, she rose to stand, watching Loki bickering with Thor… Thor who was trapped in the glass cage while Loki stood outside of it. "They think us immortal," he quipped absently, hovering around the panel controlling the cage. "Care to test that theory?"_

" _Don't!" she shouted, drawing his attention. "Don't hurt him, please…"_

_A scowl formed on his face. "You should still be unconscious." Striding towards her, he remarked, "Allow me to rectify that."_

_She held out a hand to block him, as futile as that was, while Thor screamed at him not to touch her. "No offense, but I don't exactly like being knocked out."_

" _You are not exactly giving me a choice," he remarked cooly. "You refuse to cooperate."_

" _Why in the hell would I cooperate?" she snapped. "You know my opinion on this stupid war of yours. I will never support it! So does that mean you are just going to keep knocking me out for the rest of my life?"_

" _Only until I have a reasonable place to keep you from escaping."_

" _Do you hear yourself?!" she asked, her voice growing hysterical as she backed away from him. "You're insane!"_

 _His face grew darker. "You know_ nothing _of insanity. You know_ nothing _of what my mind truly is."_

" _I know it doesn't make sense!" she snapped viciously. "One second you're nice, the next you're a bloody tyrant. It's like…" Something in her brain clicked, and she looked to Thor. "What color are Loki's eyes?"_

_Thor stared at her in confusion from the cell while Loki's face grew darker. "What?" Thor asked as Loki advanced on her. "They are green."_

_Loki grabbed her arm roughly, causing her to yelp in pain. "What happened to not liking how SHIELD manhandled me?" she asked through gritted teeth._

" _You are not theirs to touch."_

" _But I'm yours, huh? Well actually, do I belong to you or the person who controls you?"_

_Time seemed to freeze. "Do. Not. Speak."_

" _What did I say back in Germany?" Pausing for dramatic effect, she replied, "Oh yeah. Humans don't like being told what to do!"_

" _You do not know what you speak of-"_

" _I know your eyes are glowing bright blue right now, and I know that all the others that you brainwashed did the exact same thing. So I'm guessing-"_

_His face twisted with rage. "Stop-"_

" _-that whoever gave you that spear used it on you before shoving you through whatever portal tossed you out on our planet."_

" _Silence-"_

" _No! I will won't just shut up! Not until you admit-"_

" _You do not know what you speak of-"_

" _-that you are being controlled and snap out of it-"_

" _Darcy please-"_

" _\- or you make me stop-"_

"SILENCE!"

_The roar of his voice echoed through the chamber, followed by only the sounds of his heavy breathing. He stared at her, rage twisting his face, only for the rage to be broken when she let out a small cough. Followed by another. And another. And by the third cough, he saw the stain on her lips._

_He saw the blood._

_And he looked down in horror as he saw the blade of his weapon piercing her stomach._

_His eyes locking with hers, she quietly commented, "People always told me that my mouth would be the death of me… Guess they were right."_

_And Loki cried out as he collapsed to the ground with her, holding her dying body in his arms._

* * *

His eyes were vulnerable, his mask dropped as he stared her down. She had built up hope in his lonely heart, had been patient with him despite the fact that he deserved none of her kindness. And now, he allowed himself this one small bit of hope.

"Run with me."

* * *

"I think that's what I'm afraid of, Thor," Stark remarked grimly. "I'm afraid that match each other too well."

* * *

_Every fiber of being burned with the resistance to the fog on his mind. His powers surged forward. He did not care about what the Other wanted. All he cared about in that moment was saving the young woman who looked at him as if he were not a monster._

_He wanted nothing more than the chance to prove her right._

* * *

She smiled softly. "Thought you would never ask."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are getting so close to the second part of my story! Things will be shifting up soon, and that's when we get to the serious plot that I have planned. One more chapter, and then everything gets spun on its head. I hope y'all are enjoying this so far!
> 
> Also, I really encourage y'all to check out my other stories! I'm also considering a forth one, possibly a one-shot, with Darcy and Lady Loki. Cause yeah, I'm bi and Lady Loki is amazing. Let me know what y'all think!


	11. Chapter 11

Tony absently stared at the screen, scrolling through the reports. The damage to the tower had been extensive, but thankfully, more cosmetic rather than structural. Still, it was a pain to deal with the insurance companies over the issues. 'Random alien attacks' wasn't exactly covered in his policy, and neither was the Hulk hissy fits which left him with god sized craters in his floors as well with several damaged doorways.

Sighing, he shoved his chair back from the screen, running his hands over his face. "Screw the insurance companies, I'll just eat the costs myself."

"That's probably going to be the easiest option."

Yelping in a very undignified way, he nearly fell out of his chair at the voice over his shoulder. Spinning the chair around, he found himself faced with a rather amused looking Darcy as she alternated between looking at him and the reports screen.

"So…" she drawled out slowly, leaning forward to scroll through the details. "It's good to see that Loki didn't leave any lasting damage to the tower. The arc reactor being used for the portal was the main issue: the rest of these should be patched up within a couple months, then you can return to finishing up the rest of the tower."

"Yeah... " he began slowly, staring at her as if she were a ghost. "Though I've thought up some layout changes to make this place more…" His words tapered off, and he slowly reached forward to poke her face. "Huh… so I'm not hallucinating…"

"Are hallucinations a common thing for you nowadays?" she asked with a laugh as she playfully swatted away his hand.

"Honestly, after the past two weeks, anything is possible." He stared at her for a minute, then asked, "So… I'm assuming you are healed?"

She beamed at him, lifting up the side of her shirt to proudly show off her wound free torso, though a nasty looking scar still remained. "The spell finished up this morning. The scar isn't going away though, but I don't mind." Grinning mischievously as she dropped the shirt, she remarked, "It makes me look like a badass."

Stark couldn't help but laugh, before standing up and pulling Darcy into a tight hug. "God, am I glad to see you."

"Pssh, it's going to take a lot more than a pointy stick to get rid of me."

Pulling back, Stark grinned down at the short girl. "I didn't doubt you for a minute."

"Uh huh."

"Was I mildly concerned? Yes, but hey, the important part is here you are!" he announced, gesturing to her. "Alive and in one piece. Looks like Reindeer Games made good on his promise." Resting his hands on her shoulders, he added, "Now we can just work on getting things back to how they used to be."

Darcy's face suddenly seemed rather hesitant. "Umm...about that…"

Frowning, he asked, "What's wrong, kid?"

"...we need to talk, Tony."

* * *

"Hello, _brother_."

Tensing where he stood, Thor slowly turned to stare in disbelief. He had been staring out the window, lost deep in thought, but the voice dragged him harshly back to reality. "This is certainly a surprise."

Chuckling softly, Loki reclined back into the chair he was occupying, sprawling as if he sat in that spot everyday. "Aren't I always full of surprises?"

Seeing Loki seated so casually in his living quarters felt strange to him. Walking slowly from the window, Thor moved to sit across from his brother. "How does Lady Darcy fair?"

"She is fully healed, as I said she would be," Loki remarked cooly, conjuring a glass of wine to his hand. "Currently, she is speaking with Stark."

Grinning widely, Thor finally relaxed. "That is wonderful news! I knew you would take fine care of her, brother." The grin faded slightly, and then he asked, "Not that I am not pleased to see you, but I did not believe you would wish to speak with me."

"Honestly? This was not my idea." Sipping on the wine, he stared off at nothing. "Darcy insisted that I speak with you about… certain _developments_."

"...what have you done?"

Giving Thor an 'are you serious' look, Loki quipped, "Must you always assume that I have done something wrong?"

"You have the title of the God of _Chaos_ and _Mischief_. You did not earn that title for nothing."

"...fair enough." Downing the wine, he waved his hand and the glass disappeared. "Fine then. Straight to the point." Leaning forward, his arms resting on his knees while his hands clasped together, Loki could not help the shit eating grin on his face. "I am keeping Darcy."

* * *

"What drugs are you taking?"

"I'm not-"

"Seriously, it has to be some pretty strong stuff."

"Tony-"

"Because sane, drug free Darcy would _not_ be suggesting _running off with a war criminal_."

Rolling her eyes, she huffed as she leaned on his desk. "Oh come on, dude. Like I've ever been sane-"

"You are _not_ helping your case-"

"Look!" she snapped, pointing a finger on him. "I am _not_ on drugs, and though my sanity is questionable, I am old enough to make my own decisions."

Tony looked like he was at a loss, acting as if he wanted to make a comment but stopping himself before he could. Finally, he chose to storm off, heading over to the mini bar on the other side of the room. Angrily, he snatched the bottle of scotch off the shelf and began preparing himself a tall glass.

Slowly approaching him, Darcy hesitantly spoke as Stark took a long drink from his glass. "Have you… have you ever met someone and just… clicked with them?"

Turning around, the glass hanging loosely between his fingers, he asked, "You're telling me that you 'click' with Loki?"

"Kind of?..." Stared at him, her eyes pleading for understanding as she shifted uncomfortably in her spot. Biting her lip, she nodded. "I… I know you may not understand but-"

She was cut off by Tony laughing. "That's the thing though…" He stared her down, while her eyes were pleading, his were tired. "I do understand. I understand all too well."

* * *

Loki found himself being slammed against a wall, Thor's face inches from his own. "You will _not_ harm her."

"After everything, you still think I could harm her?" Loki asked dryly, seeming undisturbed over his current predicament.

"Not voluntarily," Thor amended, loosening his grip but still keeping a hard edge to his eyes. "But you have already hurt her once."

Now Loki looked pissed. Shoving Thor off of him, he snapped, "I was not in control of my actions!" Pacing away, he continued to angrily rant. "Had I been in my right mind, she _never_ would have been in harm's way!"

Thor stared at his brother, assessing him. "So you _were_ under another's control."

He saw Loki flex his hand, obviously uncomfortable with the topic. "That is why I am here." Finally turning back around to face Thor, he elaborated. "Darcy easily figured out that I was under another's control during the battle. She wanted details, but I refused to tell her."

Moving back towards his seat which Thor had dragged him out of, Loki unceremoniously dropped himself back down into it. "I do not want her involved. And knowledge is power: anyone who knows the full truth would be a target. Still, Darcy _insisted_ that I tell someone."

Understanding dawned on Thor. "You are going to tell me?"

"Not that I want to make you a target," Loki answered in an oddly lighthearted tone. "But you can imagine how you are a more hardy target than Darcy."

Nodding, Thor replied, "You do not need to explain yourself to me, brother. I would rather be in the line of fire than Lady Darcy. But know that whatever you tell me, I shall be passing along to the Avengers." Loki paused for a minute, before nodding in resignation. Thor then moved to sit down once again, asking, "So, tell me everything."

"I can sum it up in a name." Loki's voice was ominous, his eyes darkening. "Thanos."

* * *

Both Stark and Darcy were sitting, each sipping on their own respective glasses of scotch. Stark reclined in his chair while Darcy sat on the edge of his desk next to him, her legs lightly swinging. Silence hung in the air between them, though it was not exactly uncomfortable.

Finishing his glass, Tony decided to break the silence. "So this is really happening." He sat the glass down on the desk as she watched him. "I should be more surprised, but I'm not. You are even more sporadic than me."

She smirked, though her eyes watched him sadly. "It's not going to be permanent. Just… for a little while. And I already told him that I want a computer set up. I will have to use some encryptions so that you guys can't track me, but I can still work on projects remotely…"

"I'll hold you to that," he responded evenly. "Just because you are running off with your alien boyfriend-"

"He is _not_ my boyfriend-"

"-does not mean that you can get away with slacking off." Then, as if an afterthought, he demanded, "And I want a call every week. You know, as confirmation of life. And to make sure he isn't off plotting world domination in his spare time."

Laughing, she gave him a mock salute. "Duly noted."

Running his hands over his face, he muttered, "SHIELD is going to have an absolute hissy fit over this."

"Sorry to leave you to deal with that."

"No you're not."

Shrugging as she sipped on her glass, she replied, "You're right, I'm not. SHIELD is full of dicks."

He burst out laughing. "Yeah, they are hard to deal with at times." With a shake of his head, he stated, "God, I'm going to miss you."

She sat a hand on his shoulder, smiling sadly. "It's only for a little while. I promise."

His hand moved to rest on hers. "You better keep that promise."

* * *

"So what will you do now?"

Loki watched his brother quietly for a minute. "Explore this planet, I suppose. Try to figure out what you find so interesting about this rock."

With a sly smirk, Thor pointedly remarked, "Something tells me that you have already found that."

Loki glared at his brother. "She is just a friend, Thor."

"I said nothing to suggest otherwise."

"So you say. That grin on your face has absolutely no ulterior implications."

"But of course."

Shaking his head in disgust, he snapped, "Get your head out of the gutter, you oaf."

He rose, moving to stand next to Loki as he clapped his hand on his brother's shoulder. "She is a wonderful young woman, Loki. Take care of her, or you will have a long line of people to explain yourself to."

Looking up to meet Thor's gaze, he firmly replied, "I would expect nothing less."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnnnd that concludes the first part of the story~ The rest of this is going to kick into another gear. Be prepared...


	12. Chapter 12

When Darcy had first told him that she was running off with Loki, Tony had no idea what to think.

Well, he had a vague idea of what to think. He thought she was insane. Like, put in a straightjacket and lock in one of those padded cells out of her mind. That or he had her under his voodoo spell, despite the fact that her eyes were still their usual chocolate brown.

But he quickly grew to understand her choice. He didn't like it, and if he didn't know that she would resent him for it, he probably would have locked her up somewhere to keep her from running off. But not only would she hate him, but that slippery bastard probably would have broken her out without breaking a sweat.

Seriously, what kind of security measures can account for teleportation?

Stretching his neck, a loud cracking sound of stiff joints popping, he settled to slump down at his desk. Wounds were still healing from the week prior, he made a mental note not to threaten any terrorists for a while…

With a heavy sigh as he turned on his system's holoscreen, he muttered, "I'm getting too old for this."

Belatedly, he had to admit to himself that it was all sort of his fault. Not only did he spark this issue years ago, his recent actions did nothing to help. He thanked whatever God was out there that Pepper was now semi stabilized from the effects of Extremis and that this whole situation seemed to finally be settling down.

Scrolling through the latest files that had been sent to him, his thoughts started to drift back to Darcy. She had made good on her promise, keeping in touch regularly. Most of the time, she called him frequently, more than the once a week requirement.

Sometimes she would warn that they were traveling somewhere for a while that would put her out of cell service. He tried offering her a StarkPhone with better service, but she just laughed. A StarkPhone would be too easy to trace, and she could not risk SHIELD finding them. She would stick to her string of burner phones that she could toss after calling him.

Speaking of out of service, she was currently somewhere out of service: she told him not to expect to hear from her till next week at the earliest. Silently, he was actually happy about this. He doubted she would have reacted well to this whole situation, especially after the whole 'daring a terrorist to fight me on my front lawn' thing. The Avengers had all already given him angry lectures on that poor choice.

Shutting off the holoscreen, he reached up to rub his eyes. Nothing was going to get done right now. His mind was too unfocused. "I need a scotch."

"Sir, need I remind you that you cannot have alcohol with your current pain medication?"

Glaring towards the ceiling, the billionaire griped, "Yes, Jarvis, I'm aware. Thank you for reminding me of my current suffering."

"You are most welcome, sir."

With an angry huff, he muttered, "I'm being sassed by my own A.I."

"You did not program me to sass, sir."

"Then you've been working with me for too long." Shoving back from the desk, he decided that the best thing for him to do right now would be to tinker. Thankfully, the new Tower had been complete for the past year, complete with everything he and the team could possibly need, including his own private workshop.

He built the place, so he can give himself his own expensive lab.

The real trick of this place was convincing everyone else to move in. Thor had been easy: the moment he offered Jane a lab as well as unlimited funding, she had come running, and Thor trailed along behind her. The pair had been together since New York, with Thor being unable to return home without the Tesseract. Thankfully, he seemed to be enjoying his time on Earth.

Natasha and Clint were also surprisingly easy. THe moment they found out that they would be getting their own plush apartments which were much more desirable than the SHIELD issued places, they decided to show up with their bags. He is still not sure how they found out given the fact that he had not sent the invitation yet, but he simply let them tweak his security systems and tried not to dwell on the thought.

Steve took quite a bit of pestering and cajoling, but he eventually saw the reason of having all the team members situated under one roof. It's more efficient, and they could operate more easily as a unit.

Bruce had been the hardest. The squirrely doctor had been afraid of what might happen should he lose control in around so many civilians. Thankfully, Tony could be quite persuasive. He had to install a few Hulk proof rooms to calm the scientists fears, but it was worth it.

Picking up his latest project, Tony began to examine the miniaturized repulsor in his hands. The device had been a little pet project that he had been working on off and on since the Battle of New York. Darcy's gauntlet's had worked wonderfully, but they were a bit cumbersome and limited in charge. He was determined to perfect them.

He tried not to focus on the why of this project. In the back of his mind, he knew exactly why: for Darcy. She was a spitfire and seemed more than capable of worming her way out of precarious situations, but he knew that luck like that wouldn't last forever…

Hell, she had received a gaping hole in her side to prove it.

He wasn't sure why his thoughts kept drifting towards the kid. He supposed he missed her: she had, and still had, real promise working as his apprentice. With her in the lab, she not only brought a fresh perspective, but an upbeat attitude to everything. He guessed he could say he missed her…

" _Tony!_ "

The shout nearly caused him to drop the repulsor, struggling to regain his grip on the delicate machinery. Spinning around, he turned just in time to have someone collide into him, causing him to make a loud 'oof!' in surprise and minor pain. Glancing down, he could see the top of a head, long tresses of messy, dark brown curls spilling out over the short frame. And sobbing. He could here broken, loud sobbing as he felt tears begin to soak his band shirt.

It took him a minute for his brain to process what was happening, but when he finally caught up to the situation, he quietly asked, "Darcy?... What are you doing here?"

She clung tighter, and he still could not see her face, and he could barely make out her muffled words. "I'm here because you are a damn idiot."

"What-"

"Be thankful Darcy is fond of you, Stark." The voice, distinctly masculine and all too familiar held a dangerous edge to his tone. Finally looking up from Darcy's head, Tony could see him lounging in the billionaire's recently vacated chair. The Trickster God had a fake relaxed edge to the way he sat, though Tony could see how tense he was. "I normally do not act so politely around the fools who make her cry."

He did not speak for a minute, trying to process exactly what was happening, only to shake his head in exasperation and angrily mutter, "I could really use a drink."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is just a super short update to say that I am alive and that I'm sorry for the delay! This has been a busy two weeks, and yeahhhhh things are crazy rn. But I'm not abandoning any of my stories! I should get back into the swing of things, so expect a longer update next time! This is just a set up of what to expect. 
> 
> Also, IMPORTANT NEWS: I JUST GOT A SNAKE. He's a banana ball python and his name is Loki. I love my derpy noodle.


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